Black Widow (2021 film)

 

Based on the Marvel Comics series by Stan Lee, Don Rico, and Don Heck, Black Widow is the story of a Russian-born assassin who becomes a fugitive as she returns to her home country to confront her past and reunite with those who were the family that raised her. Directed by Cate Shortland and screenplay by Eric Pearson from a story by Jac Schaeffer and Ned Benson, the film takes place between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War where Natasha Romanoff tries to settle personal business as well as reunite with a fellow assassin and two of her mentors as they go to war against the organization that broke them apart as Scarlett Johansson reprises her role as Romanoff/Black Widow. Also starring Florence Pugh, David Harbour, O-T Fagbenle, William Hurt, Olga Kurylenko, Ray Winstone, and Rachel Weisz. Black Widow is an exhilarating and captivating film from Cate Shortland.

The film revolves around the Russian-born assassin who goes into hiding after violating the Sokovia Accords where she receives a mysterious package from her adopted younger sister as it relates to the Black Widow program and their training facility in the Red Room as the two reunite to destroy the Red Room with the help of the spies who were their adoptive parents. It’s a film that has Natasha Romanoff not just deal with demons from her past but also dealing with the mysterious figure known as the Taskmaster who is from the Red Room and can mimic the fighting moves of everyone including Romanoff and her fellow Avengers. Adding to the turmoil is a figure from her past whom she believed she had killed prior to joining the Avengers as he has an army of Black Widows under his control with a chemical that can free them from his control.

The film’s screenplay by Eric Pearson is largely straightforward yet it opens in Ohio 1995 where a young Romanoff (Ever Anderson) and her young sister Yelena Belova (Violet McGraw) are living with a seemingly-normal American couple when really they’re Russian spies in Alexei Shostakov (David Harbour) and Melina Vostokoff (Rachel Weisz) as the former is a super-soldier figure known as the Red Guardian who was also the Soviet Union’s answer to Captain America. When the family becomes separated with Romanoff and Belova trained to be Black Widows, Romanoff would eventually go on her own as it leads to her becoming a fugitive following events that lead her violating the Sokovia Accords as she has been hiding in Norway with an old S.H.I.E.L.D. ally in Mason (O-T Fagbenle) helping her out. Yet, it would be a package from Belova (Florence Pugh) that would get Romanoff out of hiding as she meets Belova in Budapest as they deal with other Black Widows.

The script isn’t just about this story of revenge and redemption but it’s really a film about a woman reuniting with the family who raised her when she was young. It’s also about the fact that these two women who were raised as sisters when they were young were both taken away, trained, and tortured to be assassins yet Romanoff begins to realize that she should’ve taken Belova with her. Yet, Belova’s time as an assassin showed a woman that was lost and under control by a mysterious substance until she attacked a former Black Widow carrying vials of another substance in Red Dust that got Belova out of the control of the Red Room but made her a target of its leader including its mysterious soldier known as the Taskmaster. A major revelation for Romanoff involves a past assignment that lead to her defection to S.H.I.E.L.D. involved killing the Red Room leader Dreykov (Ray Winstone) who is alive and continues to run the Red Room. This forces Belova and Romanoff to break Shostakov out of prison as well as find Vostokoff for a tense family reunion filled with more revelations about their false family life in Ohio.

Cate Shortland’s direction is grand as it play into the world that Romanoff has been in and trying to run away from yet realizes she has to go back and destroy it once and for all. Shot on various locations including Norway, Budapest, and Surrey, England with studio shots in Georgia including parts of Atlanta and Macon, Shortland creates a film where Romanoff is on the run from the U.S. Secretary of State in Thaddeus Ross (William Hurt) who created the Sokovia Accords. The film’s opening sequence set in Ohio play into this world that has the young Romanoff and Belova playing as if they’re normal children yet it is followed by a chase from the authorities including a ride on a small plane as it showcase a world that Romanoff and Belova have to deal with as adults. Shortland’s usage of wide and medium shots to play into not just the locations but also these intense action set pieces such as Shostakov’s prison break that is full of action and humor with the character of Shostakov providing the latter as a man who has gained weight but also still sees himself as an iconic figure.

Shortland also maintains an intimacy and knows when to break from the action for character interaction where Romanoff and Belova both try to figure out what to do with Belova revealing that she didn’t have much of a life or anything under the control of the Red Room. The scene where Romanoff, Belova, and Shostakov reunite with Vostokoff who is a scientist for the Red Room is one filled with tension with its usage of close-ups but also humor as it plays into Shostakov trying to reconnect with his family where he sings a song that the young Belova loved. The film’s third act isn’t just about the unveiling of the identity of the Taskmaster but also revelations about Romanoff’s own past as it relates to her identity but also the events in Ohio that tore her family apart. While the film is focused largely on Romanoff, it does also focus on Belova who was robbed of having a normal life as well as a life that Romanoff had as its post-credit scene is about her and her future. Overall, Shortland crafts a thrilling and compelling film about an assassin who reunites with her adoptive family to take down the organization that tore them apart.

Cinematographer Gabriel Bernstein does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its emphasis on natural low-key lighting for a few exterior scenes at night along with some stylish lighting for scenes in the Red Room building. Editors Matthew Schmidt and Leigh Folsom Boyd do excellent work with the editing as it does some stylish fast-cuts to play into the rhythm of some of the fighting along with some inventive montage work for the prison break scene. Production designers Clint Wallace and Charles Wood, with set decorators John Bush and Jess Royal plus supervising art director Thomas Brown, do amazing work with the look of the Red Room building along with Vostokoff’s secret home and the trailer that Romanoff was living in Norway. Costume designers Lisa Lovaas and Jany Temime do fantastic work with the look of the suits that the Black Widows wear including a vest that Belova likes to wear as well as Shostakov’s costume as the Red Guardian.

Hair/makeup designer Paul Gooch does nice work with the look of Romanoff’s hair but also the look of Shostakov from his prime in the mid-90s to the many tattoos he would have during his time in prison. Special effects supervisor Paul Corbould, along with visual effects supervisors Geoffrey Bauman, Varuna Darensbourg, Gerard Diefenthal, and Sean Noel Walker, does incredible work with the visual effects from the design of the Red Room’s exteriors as well as the special effects in some of the action scenes that has an air of realism through the usage of practical effects in some scenes. Sound designer Nia Hansen and sound editor Daniel Laurie do superb work with the sound in the sound effects in some of the weapons used as well as its emphasis on natural sounds for some scenes on location. The film’s music by Lorne Balfe is wonderful for its bombastic orchestral score that help play into the suspense and action along with somber pieces for the dramatic moments while music supervisor Dave Jordan provides a soundtrack that includes pieces from SIA, Don McLean, and a cover of Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit by Thing Up Anger with Malia J.

The casting by Badr Balafrej, Victoria Beattie, Fouad Chaairi, Leo Davis, Sarah Finn, and Redouane Meftah is marvelous as it feature some notable small roles from Olivier Richters as an inmate of Shostakov, the trio of Liani Samuel, Michelle Lee, and Nanna Blondell as Black Widow assassins, Ever Anderson and Violet McGraw in their respective roles as the young Romanoff and Belova who both deal with the chaos of their true identities, and Olga Kurylenko as a Red Room official. O-T Fagbenle is terrific as Mason as a former S.H.I.E.L.D. official who helps Romanoff in getting supplies as well as being a comic relief of sorts since he and Romanoff used to be an item. William Hurt is superb in his small role as Thaddeus Ross as the U.S. Secretary of State trying to find Romanoff and bring her to justice for violating the Sokovia Accords.

Ray Winstone is fantastic as Dreykov as the head of the Red Room who controls everything as he hopes to maintain control in secrecy while also wanting to get Romanoff back in the fold so that he can have an Avenger on his side. Rachel Weisz is excellent as Melina Vostokoff as a maternal figure for Romanoff and Belova as well as a scientist for the Red Room who is reluctant to help out her family due to her work while also lamenting over the past and how it affected her as Weisz provides a sense of grace into the role. David Harbour is incredible as Alexei Shostakov/Red Guardian as a former Soviet super hero who breaks out of prison following a betrayal from Dreykov as he is eager to reconnect with his adoptive daughters where he provides a lot of humor in his attempts to reclaim his glory days but also some warmth as a man in conflict of his fraternal role as well as the role of an icon.

Finally, there’s the duo of Scarlett Johansson and Florence Pugh in tremendous performances in their respective roles as Natasha Romanoff and Yelena Belova. Johansson’s performance as Romanoff is grounded in a woman trying to evade the authorities but also trying to deal with her demons as there’s a bit of humor in the performance but it is largely straightforward as a woman filled with regrets as well as trying to do things right. Pugh’s performance as Belova is a major scene-stealer as someone who has awoken from the Red Room’s control as she deals with being abandoned as well as trying to find some meaning where Pugh not only has some funny one-liners but also proves to be tough and powerful. Johansson and Pugh together are a delight to watch in the way they play as sisters where they get to banter a bit but also display a bond that keeps them both sane and full of heart as they’re a massive highlight of the film.

Black Widow is a remarkable film from Cate Shortland that features great performances from Scarlett Johansson and Florence Pugh. Along with its supporting cast, study of family and identity, dazzling visuals, intense action set pieces, and a gripping music score. The film isn’t just this sprawling and grand super-hero action/adventure film but also a film about redemption and family where a woman tries to mend the broken pieces of her family by going after the forces that tore them apart. In the end, Black Widow is a marvelous film from Cate Shortland.

Cate Shortland Films: Somersault - (The Silence 2006 TV film) – Lore - (Berlin Syndrome)

Marvel Cinematic Universe: Infinity Saga: Phase One: Iron Man - The Incredible Hulk - Iron Man 2 - Thor - Captain America: The First Avenger - The Avengers


Phase Two: Iron Man 3 - Thor: The Dark World - Captain America: The Winter Soldier - Guardians of the Galaxy - The Avengers: Age of Ultron - Ant-Man

Phase Three: Captain America: Civil War - Doctor Strange - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 - Spider-Man: Homecoming - Thor: Ragnarok - Black Panther - Avengers: Infinity War - Ant-Man and the Wasp - Captain Marvel - Avengers: Endgame - Spider-Man: Far from Home

Phase Four: Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – Eternals – Spider-Man: No Way Home – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – Thor: Love and Thunder – Werewolf by Night - Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special

Phase Five: Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 – The Marvels – (Deadpool & Wolverine) - (Captain America: Brave New World) - (Thunderbolts*)

Phase 6: The Fantastic Four: First Steps - (Avengers: Doomsday) - (Avengers: Secret Wars)

© thevoid99 2021

Until the End of the World

(In Memory of Jeanne Moreau (1928-2017) & Sam Shepard (1943-2017))

Directed by Wim Wenders and screenplay by Wenders and Peter Carey from a story by Wenders and Solveig Dommartin with ideas from Michael Almereyda, Until the End of the World is the story of a road trip involving two people as they drive around the world before it’s to end in the new millennium as a nuclear satellite is about to enter Earth. The film is considered the ultimate road film as it involve two people traveling through four continents carrying something that could help the world just as time is running out. Starring William Hurt, Solveig Dommartin, Sam Neill, Chishu Ryu, Lois Chiles, David Gulipill, Max von Sydow, Rudiger Volger, Ernie Dingo, and Jeanne Moreau. Until the End of the World is a sprawling and evocative film from Wim Wenders.

A nuclear satellite from India is malfunctioning as it is set to re-enter the Earth’s atmosphere setting panic across the planet where a woman’s encounter with bank robbers and later a man on the run would take her to a journey around the world. It’s a film that is this massive journey in which a woman with self-destructive tendencies falls for this mysterious man she has met in the South of France as he would steal a cut of the money she’s gained for helping a couple of bank robbers as she would follow this man all over the world who is in trouble with the law. Amidst all of this is the idea of a world coming to an end as the world’s leaders try to figure out how to deal with the satellite that is to crash down on Earth and destroy civilization as it’s in the backdrop of this story of two people traveling around the world as one of them is carrying a machine that could help humanity.

The film’s screenplay Wim Wenders and Peter Carey is largely told from the perspective of the novelist Eugene Fitzpatrick (Sam Neill) who narrates the film from time to time as he reflects on the journey he would participate in as it relates to the protagonist in his girlfriend Claire Tourneur (Solveig Dommartin) who is this aimless party girl that is indifferent to what is happening in the world. Through a detour from a traffic jam, Claire would drive from Venice to Paris where her encounters with bank robbers in Raymond (Eddy Mitchell) and Chico (Chick Ortega) lead to a car crash as she would help them hide and given a cut of the money they stole unaware that there’s a tracking device in the bag she’s carrying. Upon getting her car repaired, she would meet this mysterious man named Trevor McPhee (William Hurt) who gets a ride to Paris as he would later steal a bit of the money she had prompting her to find him all over Europe for much of the film’s first act. The second act isn’t just a continuation of Tourneur following McPhee with the help of a private investigator in Philip Winter (Rudiger Volger) with Fitzgerald joining in the search later on. It’s about Tourneur falling for McPhee where Winter and Fitzgerald learn about his true identity and why he’s on the run.

Traveling to cities such as Lisbon, Berlin, Moscow, Beijing, Tokyo, San Francisco, and eventually ending in the Australian outback, the film’s narrative showcase the search that Tourneur would endure where it’s not just this existential journey but also a way into a world that she might see for the last time as time is a factor in the film. The sense of the unknown about this nuclear satellite looms throughout the film as the film’s third act set in the Australian outback isn’t just about McPhee and his mission but the people he’s reaching out to in a scientist named Henry Farber (Max von Sydow) and Farber’s blind wife Edith (Jeanne Moreau). Especially at a time when the unthinkable has happened leading to those wondering how the end of the world could be the beginning of something new.

Wenders’ direction is definitely grand in terms of not just the ambition he took to shooting the film in different locations across four continents around the world. It’s a film that is constantly moving whether it’s by land, by air, or by sea as it play into a world that is doing what it needed to do despite the fact that a nuclear satellite is about to crash to hit the Earth’s atmosphere and land somewhere. Wenders would show this sense of impending doom in the background whether it’s on a TV program or on a newspaper as Tourneur is too distracted to notice what is happening as she is eager to find McPhee. While there are a lot of wide shots to establish some of the locations and places these characters go into. Wenders doesn’t make sure the different locations would deter from the story as there is an intimacy whether it’s through a small video camera that Tourneur would carry from her home movie in China or some of the scenes during the third act on the Australian outback.

Wenders’ direction also has this sense of style in the close-ups and medium shots while giving each location its own mood and visual style as the scenes in Tokyo and rural Japan showcase something quiet and transcendence where Tourneur knows who McPhee really is and why he’s on the run as he is also dealing blindness due to the machine he’s carrying. The machine itself is something that would showcase what McPhee is trying to do for the Farbers as it is a very personal mission for McPhee as he hopes the machine would do some good for humanity. The third act in Australia which takes place just after the event that is described as the end of the world in terms of what happens to technology and all of the things that used to run the world. There is a moment where amidst this sense of the unknown about whether the world is gone after all or nothing has happened. There is a scene just before the end of the 20th Century is where this mixture of Aborigines and foreigners are just playing and listening to music as they don’t dwell into the loss of technology or the need to communicate with people from the outside world. It is a very brief moment of pure simplicity and community that showcases what humanity could be as all of the characters who were part of Tourneur’s journey interact as one.

Yet, it’s a very brief moment that is followed by humanity’s own flaw as it play into the need to start again with technology as it play into not just the sense of immorality but also loss. It’s where Fitzgerald becomes the protagonist of sorts where he goes through his own development from being a lover of Tourneur obsessed with going after her into finding himself. He would observe into what Farber has created that leave Tourneur and McPhee not just lost but also display something that Wenders sees is absolutely dead-on about what the world would become in the 21st Century. It’s where the protagonists are once again traveling but instead in reality, it’s through the mind where they become completely lost and they need to go into a journey of self-discovery. Overall, Wenders creates a majestic yet intoxicating film about a couple going on a worldwide journey just before the world is about to end.

Cinematographer Robby Muller does brilliant work with the film’s cinematography with its usage of natural lighting for many of the exteriors in the different locations with some lighting for some of the interior scenes including the party at Venice or the hotels in Lisbon, Berlin, and Moscow. Editor Peter Przygodda does excellent work with the editing with its usage of jump-cuts in some places as well as montages to play into Fitzgerald’s narration and other elements to help play into the sense of movement of the film. Production designers Sally Campbell and Thierry Flamand, with set decorators Ze Branco and Tim Ferrier as well as a quartet of art directors in Steve Burns, Claudio Carrer, Ian Gracie, and Jan Schlubach, do fantastic work with the look of some of the places the characters go to such as the party in Venice, Fitzgerald’s Parisian apartment, the different hotel rooms through the different locations, and Farber’s lab inside the caves in Australia.

Costume designer Montserrat Casanova does superb work with the costumes from the array of dresses that Tourneur wears including the black wig as well as some of the stylish clothes the men wear throughout the film. The special effects work of Frank Schlegel is terrific for the look of the visuals from the machines that McPhee is carrying as well as what Farber is displaying from the big televisions to the computers at the lab. The sound work of Jean-Paul Mugel is amazing for the atmosphere of the locations as well as the sound of radios, televisions, and vehicles to create something natural and engaging. The film’s music by Graeme Revell is incredible for its mixture of jazz, ambient, and electronic music to play into this idea of a music of the future as it play into the sense of the unknown while the film’s music soundtrack features a diverse collection of acts and artists who all provide their own ideas of the music of the future. Among these acts and artists in the film’s soundtrack include music from Talking Heads, U2, Depeche Mode, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, Neneh Cherry, Jane Sibbery and k.d. lang, Daniel Lanois, R.E.M., Can, T-Bone Burnett, Tom Waits, Peter Gabriel, Robbie Robertson, Elvis Costello, Patti Smith with Fred “Sonic” Smith, Crime & the City Solution, and Julee Cruise.

The film’s marvelous cast include an array of appearances and small roles from Adelle Lutz as a friend of Tourneur in Makiko, Ernie Dingo as a detective trying to find McPhee, Ernest Berk and Christine Oesterlein as relatives of Farber, Allen Garfield as a used car salesman in San Francisco, Lauren Graham (not the actress of Gilmore Girls fame) as Farber’s granddaughter, Jimmy Little as an Aboriginal assistant of Farber in Peter, Justine Saunders as Edith’s caretaker Maisie, Kylie Belling as an Aboriginal doctor who carries a radiation detector, Kuniko Miyake as a Japanese innkeeper, and Eddy Mitchell as a French bank robber who gets wounded during the escape as he thanks Tourneur for helping him. Chick Ortega is terrific as Chico as a French bank robber who befriends Tourneur as he would follow her around the world through his tracking device while aspires to be a drummer while Chishu Ryu is superb as a Japanese innkeeper who specializes in making herbs as he would help McPhee with his eye site.

Lois Chiles is wonderful as Farber’s daughter Elsa who would provide the images key to what Edith would see while David Gulipill is fantastic as an Aboriginal man named David who is a family friend that would help McPhee reach his destination. Rudiger Volger is excellent as the private detective Philip Winters as a man who specializes in finding missing children as he helps Tourneur find McPhee in the film’s first act only to discover his true identity where he and Fitzgerald would follow them. Max von Sydow is brilliant as Henry Farber as a scientist trying to create a machine that would allow the blind to see things based on memories only to go way over his head with his ambitions. Jeanne Moreau is radiant as Edith Farber as the scientist’s blind wife who laments over the experiment she is taking part of as well as wondering if what she’s participating will do any good for the world.

Sam Neill is amazing as Eugene Fitzgerald as the film’s narrator who is a lover of Tourneur that copes with the journey Tourneur is enduring as well as his own writer’s block as he tries to write a novel only to find something more in Australia as he would embrace the simplicity of life while watch Tourneur and McPhee descend toward their obsession with technology. William Hurt is incredible as Trevor McPhee as a mysterious man that is on the run from the law as he is carrying a machine from Farber where he would cope with blindness and the demands of his mission as it’s a very low-key yet engaging performance from Hurt. Finally, there’s Solveig Dommartin in a phenomenal performance as Claire Tourneur as an aimless party girl who embarks on a journey that would change her life as she copes with the things she is seeing as it’s this entrancing yet offbeat performance from Dommartin.

Until the End of the World is a tremendous film from Wim Wenders. Featuring a great ensemble cast, gorgeous visuals set on many different locations, a riveting story on a world coming to an end, and an exhilarating music soundtrack. It’s a film, in its full-length near five-hour run time, truly lives up to the idea of the ultimate road movie in a lot of ways while also predicting what would happen during the end of the world as well as humanity becoming reliant on technology to find something that can’t be found. In the end, Until the End of the World is a magnificent film from Wim Wenders.

Wim Wenders Films: (Summer in the City) - (The Goalkeeper’s Fear of the Penalty) - (The Scarlet Letter (1973 film)) - Alice in the Cities - Wrong Move - Kings of the Road - The American Friend - (Lightning Over Water) - (Room 666) - (Hammett) - (The State of Things) – Paris, Texas - (Tokyo-Ga) – Wings of Desire - (Notebook on Cities and Clothes) - (Faraway, So Close!) - (Lisbon Story) - (Beyond the Clouds) - (A Trick of Light) - (The End of Violence) - (Buena Vista Social Club) - (The Million Dollar Hotel) - (The Soul of a Man) - (Land of Plenty) - (Don’t Come Knocking) - (The Palermo Shooting) - (Pina) - Salt of the Earth - (Every Thing Will Be Fine) – (The Beautiful Days of Aranjuez) – (Submergence) - (Pope Francis: A Man of His Word)

© thevoid99 2017

The Incredible Hulk (2008 film)

Based on the comic series by Jack Kirby and Stan Lee, The Incredible Hulk is the story of a man who turns into a green and destructive monster whenever he gets angry as he is pursued by the army while trying to find a cure for his condition. Directed by Louis Leterrier and screenplay by Zak Penn with contributions by Edward Norton, the film is a reboot of sorts of the 2003 film where it focuses on Bruce Banner’s quest to cure himself and evade the army unaware that a power-hungry soldier wants to use a similar formula to beat the Hulk. Starring Edward Norton, Tim Roth, Liv Tyler, Tim Blake Nelson, Ty Burrell, and William Hurt. The Incredible Hulk is a lively yet messy film from Louis Leterrier.

The film follows a man who was part of a gamma radiation experiment where he became a green monster that destroys everything whenever he’s angry as he finds himself being pursued by the U.S. army. During this pursuit, Bruce Banner/the Hulk (Edward Norton) is trying to find a cure as he is trying to meet a fellow scientist who claims to have a cure yet a soldier who is in pursuit of Banner wants what Banner has to destroy him. It’s a film with a simple premise which explores a man just wanting to maintain some control as he also copes with disconnecting himself with the life he previously had which includes a relationship with Betty Ross (Liv Tyler) whose father in General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross (William Hurt) is pursuing Banner. During this pursuit, General Ross gets the service of a revered British soldier named Emil Blonsky (Tim Roth) who wants to capture Banner as he also wants what Banner is carrying as a way to stop him.

The film’s screenplay doesn’t just try to explore Banner’s attempt to find a cure but also trying to figure out why he was able to stay alive despite the fact that the radiation was going to kill him. Yet, there is a lot going on as one of the reasons General Ross is pursuing him is so that he can find out what made Banner survive and turn this experiment into a weapon as General Ross isn’t exactly an antagonist. Especially as it relates to his estranged relationship with his daughter as well as come to the realization of how bad this kind of power can be after giving Blonsky a serum that can allow him to enhance his own abilities. While the script succeeds in establishing the plot and its characters, it does suffer from being too predictable while characters such as Betty Ross aren’t given much to do in terms of advancing the story as all she really is someone that can bring Banner back whenever he’s the Hulk.

Louis Leterrier’s direction is definitely big in terms of its setting and what is expected in blockbuster action films as it feature some extravagant action sequences as well as moments of suspense. Yet, Letterier knows when give the action a break to focus on the story as it relates to Banner trying to hide and evade the authorities despite some of the lackluster material involving him and Betty. Shot largely in Toronto with additional locations in New York City and Rio de Janeiro, the film does play into a large world where the first act has Banner in Latin America while the second act in Toronto and areas in Canada as Virginia and the third act in New York City. Leterrier does create some unique compositions with the close-ups and medium shots in focusing on the characters as well as wide shots to capture the action and the scenes involving the Hulk. The film’s climax is, not surprisingly, overblown as it pits the Hulk against a monster called Abomination where it is quite clunky at times but does deliver in what it aims to be which is two monsters going mano-a-mano. Overall, Leterrier creates a fine yet flawed film about a man who becomes a monster whenever he gets angry.

Cinematographer Peter Menzies Jr. does nice work with the cinematography as it is a bit desaturated in its look and approach to colors as it relates to the locations and some of the big set pieces in the film. Editors John Wright, Rick Shaine, and Vincent Taballion do nice work with the editing where it does have some stylish montages as well as some fast-cutting for some of the film’s action scenes. Production designer Kirk M. Petruccelli, with supervising art director Daniel T. Dorrance as well as set decorators Monica Delfino, Carolyn “Cal” Loucks, and Monica Rochlin, does fantastic work with the home in Brazil that Banner lives in as well as the college campuses where Betty and the mysterious Mr. Blue works at. Costume designers Denise Cronenbergh and Renee Fontana does terrific work with the costumes as it is mostly casual with the exception of the uniforms and clothes the Army personnel wears.

Visual effects supervisors Ian Hunter, Betsy Paterson, Colin Strause, Greg Strause, and Chris Wells does excellent work with the visual effects in not just the design of the Hulk but also the monster that would be Abomination though some of it does look spotty at times. Sound editors Greg Hedgepath and Eric Lindemann, with sound designer Michael Babcock, do superb work with the sound as it add to some of the intensity of the action as well as in the film’s climatic battle between Hulk and Abomination. The film’s music by Craig Armstrong is wonderful as it’s mostly orchestral with air of bombast for the action scenes and serene moments for the drama.

The casting by Robin D. Cook and Laray Mayfield is brilliant as it feature some notable small roles from Lou Ferrigno as a campus security guard, Martin Starr as a student at a lab, Jim Wilson and Jack Magee as a couple of students who capture footage of the Hulk’s battle with the Army, Michael K. Williams as a bystander during the Hulk-Abomination battle, Rickson Gracie as Banner’s martial arts teacher in Brazil, Peter Mensah as a fellow general who gives General Ross information on Blonsky, Paul Soles as a pizzeria owner who is a longtime friend of Banner, Christina Cabot as General Ross’ assistant Major Kathleen Sparr, Debora Nascimento as Banner’s Brazilian girlfriend Martina, and Ty Burrell as Betty’s boyfriend Leonard Samson who is also a psychiatrist as he learns why Betty never talks about her father. Tim Blake Nelson is superb as Samuel Sterns as a college professor/researcher who has been trying to analyze everything Banner’s given him where he makes a discovery into what could help Banner. William Hurt is excellent as General Thaddeus “Thunderbolt” Ross as an Army general who is eager to capture Banner and figure out what made him survive the gamma radiation as he hopes to have it weaponized only to see what can really go wrong.

Liv Tyler is alright as Betty Ross as she’s not given much to do but be there for Banner as well as scream or get herself into some bad situation as it’s a very badly-written role for Tyler. Tim Roth is fantastic as Emil Blonsky as a Russian-born British marine who is asked to help capture Banner as he wants to know what makes Banner the Hulk as he is eager to do whatever it takes to beat the Hulk anyway he can as it’s a very slimy yet fun performance from Roth. Finally, there’s Edward Norton in a marvelous performance as Bruce Banner/the Hulk as a scientist who is on the run following an experiment gone wrong as Norton brings a nice weight to his role as someone eager to rid of the persona he would unleash while also bringing some light-hearted humor to the role.

The Incredible Hulk is a good though flawed film from Louis Leterrier. Despite some excellent performances from Edward Norton, Tim Roth, and William Hurt as well as enough moments that are entertaining. It is a film that plays too much by the rules in terms of what it sets out to be with very little to make it more compelling. In the end, The Incredible Hulk is a worthwhile film from Louis Leterrier.

Louis Leterrier Films: (The Transporter) – (Unleashed) – (The Transporter 2) – (Clash of the Titans (2010 film)) – (Now You See Me) – (Grimsby)

Related: Hulk

Marvel Cinematic Universe: Infinity Saga: Phase One: Iron Man - Iron Man 2 - Thor (2011 film) - Captain America: The First Avenger - The Avengers (2012 film)

Phase Two: Iron Man 3 - Thor: The Dark World - Captain America: The Winter Soldier - Guardians of the Galaxy - The Avengers: Age of Ultron - Ant Man

Phase Three: Captain America: Civil War - Doctor Strange - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – Spider-Man: Homecoming – Thor: Ragnarok – Black Panther – Avengers: Infinity War – Ant-Man & the Wasp – Captain Marvel - Avengers: Endgame - Captain Marvel - Spider-Man: Far from Home

Multiverse Saga: Phase Four: Black Widow (2021 film) - Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – Eternals – Spider-Man: No Way Home – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness – Thor: Love and Thunder – Werewolf by Night - Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special

Phase Five: Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania - Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 – The Marvels – (Deadpool & Wolverine) - (Captain America: Brave New World) - (Thunderbolts*)

Phase 6: The Fantastic Four: First Steps - (Avengers: Doomsday) - (Avengers: Secret Wars)

Related: MCU is Cinema: Pt. 1 - Pt. 2 - Pt. 3 – Pt. 4 – (Part 5) – (Part 6) – (Part 7) - The MCU: 10 Reasons Why It Rules the World

© thevoid99 2017

Broadcast News

Written and directed by James L. Brooks, Broadcast News is the story of a neurotic TV news producer who finds herself torn between her loyalty to a cynical reporter and a charismatic but dim anchorman. The film is an exploration of the world of news media where three people try to help bring news to the world in an ever-changing world. Starring Holly Hunter, Albert Brooks, William Hurt, Joan Cusack, Lois Chiles, Robert Prosky, Peter Hackes, and Jack Nicholson. Broadcast News is a witty yet captivating film from James L. Brooks.

The film revolves around a love triangle between a TV news producer, a veteran reporter, and a new anchorman for a Washington D.C. news station as they all try to report the news and sell it to the public. It’s a film that isn’t just an exploration of the world of news but also the lives of three people who are part of this world as they struggle to find their roles in it. Especially as their professional ideals and lives begin to clash with their own personal lives in this complicated love triangle where they’re all trying to do the same thing despite their different takes on the news. James L. Brooks’ script doesn’t just the explore the conflict about how the news should be presented and sold to the public but also in the ideals of these three characters.

The TV producer Jane Craig (Holly Hunter) is someone that believes that the news should be told and not embellished as it’s something the reporter Aaron Altman (Albert Brooks) also believes though he is more cynical about the way news is being told and commercialized for a mass audience. Coming into their lives is Tom Grunick (William Hurt) who has the looks and charm of a news anchor but isn’t very smart as he knows that where he wants to help as he met Craig during a convention about the ethics of news. Grunick is someone that has the look to report and tell the news to the public as he is everything Altman isn’t as he is nice and not trying to offend anyone. Altman is a prick because he is passionate about wanting to get the facts straight and be true to the news. While Craig doesn’t think highly of Grunick at first, she eventually realizes his potential as well as the fact that he is actually presentable and can do his job.

It’s not just in the development of the story and the characters where Brooks succeeds at but it’s also in the many quirks of the characters such as Craig who is quite neurotic and often cries daily. She is also not in a relationship or involved with anyone other than Altman until Grunick appears as he is a very interesting person despite his lack of intelligence. Altman is baffled by how Grunick would get work so easily yet when Altman is given the chance to cover the news. Grunick gives him a few pointers on how to present himself as it would be a turning point for him but also with some realizations that he must face. The film also features a subplot that comes in its second half as it relates to a dangerous layoff due to budget cuts as it plays into the reality of the TV news world where it’s not just about ratings but also money.

Brooks’ direction is very simple in terms of the compositions he creates yet does manage to infuse some style into the way the newsroom and what goes on behind the scenes are shown. The film opens with a trio of prologues that relates to the main characters as children as it shows exactly who they are and what they would become as adults. Shot largely in Washington D.C. with some parts shot in Maryland and Virginia, the film does play into a world that is very energetic and demanding where Brooks doesn’t use a lot of wide shots as he favors something more intimate in the medium shots and close-ups. There are moments where Brooks’ direction does have some style such as this shot of Grunick in the foreground shot from behind while Craig is in the background very far in a wide shot as it play into what goes on in news reporting.

One notable sequence involving trying to get tape and such for a news report is among one of the most inventive and exciting moments in the film where it does have this air of realism in what Brooks is showing. Even as it shows an editor trying to cut something to the last second and get it to be aired for the evening news. Brooks’ direction is also very light-hearted in scenes where there’s a gathering or moments that are quite comical but not overtly. It’s told with a sense of restraint while not being totally forced as well as some of the drama though it does get quite heavy towards the third act as it relates to the love triangle between Craig, Altman, and Grunick. Especially as it reveals a lot about who they are and what they want for the world of TV news reporting. Overall, Brooks creates an insightful yet riveting film about three people in a love triangle while trying to report the news to the world.

Cinematographer Michael Ballhaus does excellent work with the film‘s cinematography as it‘s mostly straightforward to play into the look of the locations in its daytime/nighttime exteriors as well as some unique lighting for the interior scenes. Editor Richard Marks does brilliant work with the editing as it play into the frenzy of what goes on in the newsroom and behind the scenes along with some straightforward cutting for the dramatic and comedic moments outside of the newsroom. Production designer Charles Rosen and set decorator Jane Bogart does fantastic work with the look of the editing room in the news room and the homes of some of the characters.

Costume designer Molly Maginnis does nice work with the costumes as it is kind of casual with bits of style as well as some of the infamous clothing of the 1980s with fake shoulder pads. Sound editor Robert Grieve does terrific work with the sound from the way the chaos of trying to get a story displayed on television to the sound of the gatherings the characters go to. The film’s music by Bill Conti is wonderful for its score that is mainly a mixture of low-key piano-based music with some electronic keyboards to play into the world of the TV news.

The casting by Ellen Chenoweth is great as it features some notable small roles from Kimber Shoop as the young Grunick, Dwayne Markee as the young Altman, Gennie James as the young Craig, Stephen Mendillo as Grunick’s father, Ed Wheeler as an anchorman in George Wein, Glen Roven and Marc Shaiman as a couple of music composers trying to create a new theme for the news channel, Christian Clemenson as the TV editor Bobby, Leo Burmester as Craig’s father, Marita Geraghty as a date-rape woman that Grunick interviews, and a low-key cameo appearance from a faceless John Cusack as an angry messenger. In another notable small role that is a cameo of sorts, Jack Nicholson is superb as the evening news anchorman Bill Rorish as this legendary reporter that tells the news to the world as he carries some seniority as well as being the one guy everyone has to make sure he looks good. Peter Hackes is excellent as the news station boss Paul Moore who tries to keep things going while dealing with the financial chaos of the station. Joan Cusack is fantastic as Blair Litton as a staff member who is also Craig’s best friend of sorts who has an amazing scene running around the office to bring a tape in and evade all sorts of obstacles.

Lois Chiles is wonderful as anchorwoman Jennifer Mack who takes a liking towards Grunick as she would briefly go out with him. Robert Prosky is brilliant as Ernie Merriman as the station’s manager who tries to keep things afloat while being aware of the layoffs that might emerge. Albert Brooks is phenomenal as Aaron Altman as this very intelligent and idealistic reporter who has always been behind the scenes or covering events around him as he copes with Grunick’s presence as well as his attempts to bring some substance to the world of news. William Hurt is remarkable as Tom Grunick as this dim but kind-hearted reporter that has the looks and charms to be an anchorman as it’s a very complex character as he represents someone that wants to make the news more accessible. Finally, there’s Holly Hunter in an incredible performance as Jane Craig as a TV news producer who is torn between two men while often crying for some odd reason as it’s a very fiery and energetic performance that play into a woman trying to maintain the idea of what TV news should be.

Broadcast News is a marvelous film from James L. Brooks that features great performances from Holly Hunter, William Hurt, and Albert Brooks. It’s a film that is very smart as well as being very funny thanks in part to its witty script as well as a superb supporting cast. In the end, Broadcast News is a sensational film from James L. Brooks.

James L. Brooks Films: (Terms of Endearment) - (I’ll Do Anything) - (As Good as It Gets) - (Spanglish) - (How Do You Know)

© thevoid99 2016

Alice (1990 film)

Written and directed by Woody Allen, Alice is the story about an upper-class New York housewife whose life changes after meeting a jazz musician as she thinks about her life as she turns to a mysterious Chinese man for help. Inspired by Federico Fellini’s 1965 film Juliet of the Spirits, the film is a mixture of romance and fantasy where a woman tries to find herself away from the life she’s lived. Starring Mia Farrow, William Hurt, Joe Mantegna, Alec Baldwin, Keye Luke, Judy Davis, Blythe Danner, Cybill Shepherd, Bernadette Peters, and Bob Balaban. Alice is an extraordinary film from Woody Allen.

The film plays into the life of a rich New York City housewife who goes to a mysterious Chinese man (Keye Luke) in Chinatown to get something for her aching back. What happens instead is that this woman named Alice (Mia Farrow) goes into a journey of self-discovery as she thinks about her 16-year marriage to Doug (William Hurt) while falling for a musician named Joe (Joe Mantegna) whom she had dreams about. In taking different amounts of herbs, Alice encounters these revelations about her life while wondering who to be with as she turns to her estranged sister Dorothy (Blythe Danner) for help while becoming driven to do something about her life.

It’s a film that takes this woman who for all of her life has lived a world where it’s very routine where she shops, goes to salons, gossip with various friends, and do all sorts of things as a rich woman. Yet, Alice is also quite prudish and unwilling to take risks where she seems to be content with her life despite the fact that she and Doug don’t spend much time together anymore as he’s always working. It’s only until she starts to have some backaches where she meets the mysterious Dr. Yang as she takes different herbs in her drinks to play into her attraction towards Joe as well as doing things like be invisible and pry into his life and other people’s lives.

The screenplay that Woody Allen creates is full of these revelations that Alice faces not just about herself but also her late mother (Gwen Verdon) and the things she does as well as her marriage that’s definitely lost steam. While she finds some happiness in Joe, it’s not enough as Joe is dealing with being a divorcee with a child to take care of. Though Alice is also a mother, her two kids are often in the care of a nanny as it adds more to her own existential plight as well as what kind of woman she needs to be.

Allen’s direction is quite straightforward in terms of compositions though there are moments of style in the way he brings up this idea of fantasy. Notably as it includes a sequence where Alice meets the ghost of her former lover Ed (Alec Baldwin) who observes her as well as Joe while having a very low opinion on Doug. There’s also some funny moments of Alice being invisible as she talks to a friend on the phone as only the phone is shown while another sequence has Alice and Joe both be invisible through the herbal drink that Alice had been carrying where it’s funny but also would become a key plot point for both characters. There’s also a moment where Alice has to face things about her childhood and her relationship with her estranged sister as it also plays some truths about her mother. All of these revelations where Allen uses medium shots and some close-ups are all to express Alice’s journey into finding herself and meaning in her life. Overall, Allen crafts a very majestic and compelling film about a woman’s personal journey in finding herself.

Cinematographer Carlo Di Palma does excellent work with the film‘s very colorful cinematography from some of the look of the interiors like Alice and Doug‘s home to the more low-key look of the scenes in Chinatown. Editor Susan E. Morse does nice work with the editing as it‘s mostly straightforward where it doesn‘t go for style except in a few rhythmic cuts for some of its comedic moments. Production designer Santo Loquasto, with set decorator Susan Bode and art director Speed Hopkins, does amazing work with the set designs from the look of Alice and Doug’s posh home to the school where her kids and Joe’s daughter go to.

Costume designer Jeffrey Kurland does fantastic work with the costumes from the posh clothes Alice and her friends wear to the more simplistic look of Dr. Yang. Visual effects supervisor Randall Balsmeyer does terrific work with some of the visual effects like the dissolved look of Ed to some of the moments where Alice and Joe become invisible. Sound editor Robert Hein does superb work with the sound to create some effects where dialogue is presented while the characters aren’t talking as well as some of the scenes in the locations. The film’s music soundtrack features a mix of jazz and classical music to play up the sense of adventure and fantasy that is prevalent in the film.

The casting by Juliet Taylor is brilliant for the ensemble that is created where it features some small appearances from Holland Taylor as a friend of Alice’s, June Squibb as Alice’s maid, Gwen Verdon and Patrick O’Neal as Alice’s late parents, filmmaker James Toback as a writing professor Alice briefly goes to for instructions on writing, Elle MacPherson as a model at a clothing store, Bob Balaban as a guest at Dorothy’s Xmas party, and Judy Davis as Joe’s ex-wife Vicki. Other notable small roles include Alec Baldwin as Alice’s deceased lover Ed, Bernadette Peters as a muse who appears through one of Alice’s herbal drinks, and Cybill Shepherd as an old friend of Alice’s who becomes a powerful TV executive who is uninterested in Alice’s ideas.

Keye Luke is amazing as Dr. Yang as a man who gives Alice mysterious herbs to help her as he would guide her into the journey that she must take. William Hurt is terrific in a small though sort of bland role as Alice’s husband Doug as a man who is always working while not really understanding about what his wife does. Blythe Danner is wonderful as Alice’s older sister Dorothy as a woman whom Alice hadn’t seen who becomes aware of Alice’s problems as well as giving her some harsh truths about Alice. Joe Mantegna is great as the musician Joe Ruffalo as a man whom Alice falls for as he is seeking for someone to overcome his life as a divorced man while being mystified by some of Alice’s experience with the herbs. Finally, there’s Mia Farrow in a remarkable performance as the titular character as a woman who learns about her life as well as finding more about herself as Farrow brings a bit of humor and humility to a character that becomes strong as the story progresses.

Alice is a marvelous film from Woody Allen that features a winning leading performance from Mia Farrow. Along with a great supporting cast that includes Joe Mantegna, William Hurt, Blythe Danner, and the late Keye Luke. It’s a film that isn’t just one of Allen’s more entertaining films but also one of his most thought-provoking about individuality and finding a role in life. In the end, Alice is a sensational film from Woody Allen.

Woody Allen Films: What's Up Tiger Lily? - Take the Money & Run - Bananas - Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* (*But Were Afraid to Ask) - Sleeper - Love and Death - Annie Hall - Interiors - Manhattan - Stardust Memories - A Midsummer's Night Sex Comedy - Zelig - Broadway Danny Rose - The Purple Rose of Cairo - Hannah & Her Sisters - Radio Days - September - Another Woman - New York Stories: Oedipus Wrecks - Crimes & Misdemeanors - Shadows & Fog - Husbands & Wives - Manhattan Murder Mystery - Don’t Drink the Water - Bullets Over Broadway - Mighty Aphrodite - Everyone Says I Love You - Deconstructing Harry - Celebrity - Sweet & Lowdown - Small Time Crooks - The Curse of the Jade Scorpion - Hollywood Ending - Anything Else - Melinda & Melinda - Match Point - Scoop - Cassandra’s Dream - Vicky Cristina Barcelona - Whatever Works - You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger - Midnight in Paris - To Rome with Love - Blue Jasmine - Magic in the Moonlight - Irrational Man - (Cafe Society)

The Auteurs #24: Woody Allen Pt. 1 - Pt. 2 - Pt. 3 - Pt. 4

© thevoid99 2013

Kiss of the Spider Woman

Based on the novel by Manuel Puig, Kiss of the Spider Woman is the story of two different men imprisoned at a Brazilian jail cell as they talk about a film to kill the time. The film they discuss would parallel their own fate as they each try to figure out what to do with the time they spend in prison. Directed by Hector Babenco and with a script adapted by Leonard Schrader, the film is a mixture of two different narratives as told by a gay man and a political prisoner. Starring Raul Julia, William Hurt, Sonia Braga, Milton Goncalves, and Jose Lewgoy. Kiss of the Spider Woman is a marvelous film from Hector Babenco.

Sharing a cell in a Brazilian prison are two different men for two very different crimes as the flamboyant Luis Molina (William Hurt) tells a story about a film he had seen many years ago to his cellmate Valentin Arregui (Raul Julia). Luis is in prison for having sex with an underage boy while Valentin is serving time for his radical political beliefs. In order to kill time, Luis tells the often aggravated Valentin the film he saw about a French woman (Sonia Braga) who falls for a Nazi officer (Herson Capri) in World War II as she becomes confused about her role due to her unwilling involvement with the French resistance. Though Valentin always keep watching who is being taken and tortured, he wonders about what is going on in the outside world.

Valentin eventually reveals stories about his own life and why he went to prison as he and Luis become close. With Valentin’s health failing due to bad food, Luis takes care of him by telling him the film about the French woman and another one about a spider woman (Sonia Braga) to comfort him. When Luis is set to be paroled, he spends his last moments with Valentin as Luis tries to hide a dark secret for the reasons he’s being released. Suddenly, Luis’s own life and his predicament is paralleling the movie he told Valentin making him feel guilty for what he’s doing.

The film is simply about two different prisoners that becomes close during their time as one of them tells a story to help kill time. The story that this man tells involves betrayal and sacrifice as it would later parallel his own fate. Yet, it’s more about the relationship of these two different men that is the heart of the film. One is a very political yet intense man that wants to know what is going on while dealing with his own personal issues. The other is a charming homosexual that is just kind to everyone while yearning to be with a man. What happens is that a love story sort of comes out but not in a conventional format of what is expected.

Leonard Schrader’s screenplay is brilliant for the multi-layered storylines presented in the film as it’s carried mainly by the main bulk of the narrative involving the two prisoners. The other narrative about the French cabaret singer and the Nazi officer falls for is presented in a 1940s style melodrama. There’s also narratives that’s largely based on the memories of the two prisoners as Valentin’s own story involves the conflict he’s dealing with between politics and his love for a woman (Sonia Braga). For Luis, his pre-prison life has him revealing the care he has for his mother (Miriam Pires) and a straight waiter (Nuno Leal Maia). Schrader’s script succeeds in not playing to what the film-within-a-film narrative would foreshadow but also get into the heart of relationship between these two very different yet extreme men.

The direction of Hector Babenco ranges into many degrees of style for the film as the main bulk of the film involving Luis and Valentin is intimate yet wondrous as it opens with this wonderful 360 degree camera movement as Luis tells his story. Babenco goes for a very straightforward approach to the direction while maintaining a sense of style in his framing while the shots outside of the prison are shot on location in Sao Paulo. For the sequences that Luis telling from a film, the 1940s portion of the film is presented in a look that recalls the melodrama of the times. The film also dwells into many genres from prison drama, melodrama, and suspense as the suspense in the 1940s sequence do come back in a more intense manner for the film’s third act. The overall work Babenco does is thrilling and engaging as he creates a gorgeous yet mesmerizing film.

Cinematographer Rodolfo Sanchez does an amazing job with the film‘s photography to maintain a gritty though stylish look for the prison scenes with candle lights for the nighttime scenes and some colorful ones for some scenes in Sao Paulo. For the 1940s and Spider Woman fantasy scenes, both scenes take on different color palettes as the 1940s scene that takes on a sepia color while the Spider Woman sequences is all shot in blue. Editor Mauro Alice does an excellent job with the editing to help structure the different strands of narrative while moving them back and forth seamlessly without disrupting the flow of the film.

Art director Clovis Bueno does a great job with the set pieces created for the film such as the grimy cell Luis and Valentin live in to the lavish world of the 1940s scene. Costume designer Patricio Besso does a brilliant job with the costumes for the 1940s film scene to play its lavish tone along with a more colorful array of clothes for the character of Luis. Sound editor Susan Dudeck does a nice job with the sound work to capture the intimate chaos of the prison scenes while going for a more broader approach for the nightclub scene in the 1940s portion of the film. The film’s score by John Neschling and Nando Cordeiro is superb for its array of different styles of music. Ranging from dramatic violin music to play up the relationship between Luis and Valentin to cabaret style for the 1940s stuff along with suspenseful-driven electronic music for parts of the third act. The score is among one of the film’s highlights in its technical field.

The casting for the film is terrific as it features an amazing ensemble that includes Antonio Petrin and Wilson Grey as two French resistance agents, Denise Dumont as a friend of the cabaret singer, and Herson Capri as the Nazi officer the singer falls for as they all appear in the film set in the 1940s. Other notable performances include Miriam Pires as Luis’ mother, Nuno Leal Maia as a waiter friend of Luis, Milton Gonclaves as an abusive policeman, and Jose Lewgoy as a corrupt warden. Sonia Braga is great in a trio of roles to exemplify the personalities that the two men dwell into the film. For the role of the cabaret singer, Braga brings a very dramatized approach to the character to play up the tone of that film. In the role of the Spider Woman and as Valentin’s lover Marta, she goes for a more restrained approach in the latter while being more exotic in the former.

Finally, there’s the two phenomenal performances of William Hurt and Raul Julia that are truly the heart and soul of the film. Hurt brings a very captivating yet engaging performance as the sensitive Luis as he makes the man more than just a flamboyant homosexual. Hurt allows Luis to be very complex as he’s a man that is conflicted with what he’s set to do while trying to be a friend to Valentin. Julia’s performance as Valentin is a more fiery role than Hurt’s Luis as Julia gets to match up to Hurt’s showier performance by displaying the anguish Valentin is going through. Hurt and Julia together show different dynamics in their performances as the two together make one hell of a combo in what is truly acting at its finest.

Kiss of the Spider Woman is an extraordinary film from Hector Babenco that features outstanding performances from William Hurt and Raul Julia. Featuring a great supporting performance from Sonia Braga and a fascinating script by Leonard Schrader. It’s a film plays up the idea of fantasy and reality as it’s told with amazing style and through a solid cast that gives the film something more than what it is expected for a film that bends genres. Kiss of the Spider Woman is an imaginative yet evocative film from Hector Babenco.

Hector Babenco Films: (O Fabuloso Fittipaldi) - (King of the Night) - (Lucio Flacio, Passenger of Agony) - Pixote - (A Terra e Redonda Como uma Laranja) - (Ironweed) - (At Play in the Fields of the Lord) - (Foolish Heart) - (Carandiru) - (El Pasado) - (Words with God) - (My Hindu Friend)

© thevoid99 2011

A History of Violence

Originally Written and Posted at Epinions.com on 6/30/06 w/ Additional Edits.

Based on the graphic novel by John Wagner and Vince Locke, A History of Violence is about a quiet, peaceful man living in a small, quiet town with a loving family whose lived is changed forever by an act of heroism. He is then confronted by a gangster who claims that he was once a killer. Directed by David Cronenberg and adapted screenplay by Josh Olson, the film is a study of a man who could be a case of mistaken identity or has a violent past that's finally caught up to him that threatens to shatter the idyllic life he has with his family. Starring Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ashton Holmes, Stephen McHattie, Ed Harris, and William Hurt. A History of Violence is a sprawling, intelligent, thrilling masterpiece from one of cinema's eccentric auteurs.

A young little girl names Sarah Stall (Heidi Hayes) screams in her bedroom after having a nightmare. She is then comforted by her father Tom (Viggo Mortensen) while her older teenage brother Jack (Ashton Holmes) suggests that she puts a nightlight on to keep the monsters away. Mother Edie (Maria Bello) looks on to see that the next morning, Sarah feels much better as everyone goes on their daily life in their quaint, small town in the middle of Indiana. Edie works at a local law firm while Tom runs his own diner that often features regular customers from the town. Jack meanwhile, makes a great catch during baseball practice that upsets the school's sport star Bobby (Kyle Schmid) as Jack's use of nonviolence only antagonizes the bully. The day ends with Jack spending time with his girlfriend Judy (Sumela Kay), Sarah at a sleep over, and Tom and Edie reliving their youth on a great night.

Then one night as Tom is about to close his diner, two men enter wanting for a cup of coffee when they start to cause some trouble. With one of the men in Billy (Greg Byrk) is harassing a waitress and the other named Leland (Stephen McHattie) is holding the place hostage, Tom takes drastic action and immediately kills the two men while getting injured. Tom becomes a hero as he is shocked by his violent actions though the town thought what he did was brave. The next day after Tom returns to the hospital, his diner was busier than ever as Edie helped out when a few mysterious men arrive. One of them was a man named Carl Fogarty (Ed Harris) who carries a big scar and disfigured eye on the left side of his face as he tells Tom he recognizes him as a man named Joey Cusack. Tom tells Fogarty that he has no idea who Joey Cusack is as him and Edie tell Fogarty to leave the diner. Edie calls a local sheriff in Sam Carney (Peter MacNeill) to question Fogarty as he learns that Fogarty works under a local mob syndicate in Philadelphia under the authority of Richie Cusack (William Hurt).

Tom becomes paranoid about Fogarty's presence as he believes that he might come back while Jack's nonviolence stance is also pushed to the edge by Bobby. On a day when she takes Sarah shopping, Edie finds herself stalked by Fogarty as she decides to put a restraining order on Fogarty and his men. Tom is upset over Jack's actions as he learns that Fogarty has been stalking Edie when Fogarty arrives at the house again with Jack as his hostage. A standoff that turns ugly finally shakes the life of the entire family as Edie demands to know the truth from Tom as he lays injured in the hospital. For Tom, he is forced to reveal everything as he decides to meet and confront Richie Cusack in Philadelphia.

A film about violence, notably in a setting like a small town in Indiana might not seem like the type of environment for a director like David Cronenberg. Yet, violence is often a subject that Cronenberg does as the film is really more of a character study piece. Cronenberg is aware of what the audience could expecting but he does it in a way that builds up momentum while subverting the audiences' expectation as he makes the character of Tom Stall a far more complex character. What is more surprising that for a film that runs at around 96 minutes, Cronenberg and screenwriter Josh Olsen keeps the momentum and many of the film's scenes told in a more simplistic approach. Particularly in the way they also approach many of the film's sexual and violent content.

Cronenberg's been notorious for his approach to sex and violence as the two sex scenes between Tom and Edie are very different. The first is very playful and innocent while the second is more brutal in the terms of where they are emotionally. The violence is also very graphic from the film's first opening scene which has a long, opening take of four minutes as the whole sequence stands for about seven minutes. This sequence is very reminiscent of a very similar violent scene of the first 20 minutes of Sergio Leone's classic epic-Western, Once Upon a Time in the West. Then the film cuts to a far more innocence sequence of a young girl screaming from a nightmare. It's Olsen's script and structure that really maintains a sense of momentum and development of the film's major characters. Even when the film requires some sense of tension.

Cronenberg and Olsen's display of conflict is a theme that is reminiscent of all of Cronenberg's movies. For this film, the conflict is about a man dealing with his own self where could be a case of mistaken identity or was he another man with a dark past? It's truly a Cronenberg film for that conflict, even when Tom's actions affect his family, particularly his own wife and son who have to contend with their own identities. Even in the third act when Tom confronts Richie, it's one of the best scenes because of why Richie is trying to find his brother and his hatred over him. Still, Cronenberg uses many of those moments, even the violent ones to have some kind of emotional aftermath where the film's ending is perfect for its tone. While it might seem to be Cronenberg's most accessible work, it doesn't stray away from the themes that he's delved in throughout his career.

Helping Cronenberg with his vision is longtime cinematographer Peter Suschitzky whose photography style captures a serene atmosphere early in the film that turns ugly as the lighting becomes more disturbing for its tone. Suschitzky also takes full advantage of the film's locations where most of it is in Canada to bring an idyllic, quaint American small town feel that later shifts to more darker lighting and claustrophobic tone in the film's Philadelphia sequences. Longtime production designer Carol Spier and art director James McAteer also do great work in the film's look from the world of the small town where everything looks like an American small town to the shift of the more worldly look of Richie Cusack. Longtime costume designer and Cronenberg's sister Denise also captures the look of the small town with plaid shirts that is in sharp contrast to the black suit that Ed Harris wears.

Longtime editor Ronald Sanders does a wonderful job with the film's editing by presenting some tight cutting, shifting sequences, perspectives, and a pacing style that is true to the film's tone that doesn't make it too long or too short. Sound mixer Glen Gauthier and editors Wayne Griffin and Michael O'Farrell also do great work on the film's sound that captures the atmosphere of the film's tone from its building structure. Longtime composer Howard Shore also does great work in creating dramatic tension and intensity to the film's many scenes while not making them into manipulative moments as many of his presentation is quaint and lyrical that works for the brilliant composer.

Finally, there's the film's amazing cast that includes such notable small performances from Sumela Kay as Jack's girlfriend Judy, Kyle Schmid as the local bully Bobby, Gerry Quigley and Deborah Drakeford as Tom's diner employees, and longtime Cronenberg actor Peter MacNeill as the suspicious but good-hearted sheriff Sam. Greg Byrk and Stephen McHattie make memorable appearances as the two thugs in the film's opening scene and the diner scene when they try to rob Tom and his diner. Heidi Hayes is also good as the young Sarah who is the real innocent figure of the Stall family who keeps them grounded as she does something really amazing in the film's last scene. Ashton Holmes is wonderful as Jack, a young man whose ideals about violence is changed as he struggles to deal with his own ideas and the role that his father is.

While he's only in the film for about ten minutes in the final act, William Hurt delivers a performance that is just filled with shock as he plays a crime boss with a whole lot of charm and hatred. Hurt's performance is so memorable and so filled with great dialogue, it ends up standing out on his own as he brings a lot of terror and black humor to the performance that it's truly a magnificent performance from the often underrated actor. Ed Harris is also great as the menacing Carl Fogarty with a quiet, stoic presence while he maintains a sense of restrained anger and coolness to his role that makes him a far memorable villain. Maria Bello is the film's best supporting performance as Edie who starts off as a woman who seems to have the perfect life until she and her own life is threatened by not just these dark forces but also the possibility of her husband's identity. Bello brings an old-school style of old Hollywood acting that is more complex than the typical wife role as she combines a sense of strength and darkness to her role as she is now becoming one of the more overlooked actresses of her generation.

Viggo Mortensen brings what is probably his best performance to date as Tom Stall. Early in the film, Mortensen has a nice, boyish image that is filled with innocence and comfort that he is very likeable in the film around everyone including the audience. Yet, when he takes action, his development changes as he has to go deeper into darker areas. Mortensen really owns the film as he combines his own sense of paranoia, darkness, heartbreak, and guilt into a great role as he has great chemistry with all of the actors around him. Notably his scenes with Bello and Holmes reveal his range in emotions while his scenes with Harris and Hurt reveal how he can stand out with those actors. Overall, it's a magnificent performance from the actor who's been known for his work in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

For anyone who wants a smart, thrilling mystery should check out A History of Violence from the often cerebral and disturbing David Cronenberg. Fans of Cronenberg no doubt, will find this film to be among as one of his best. With a great cast led by Viggo Mortensen, Maria Bello, Ed Harris, and a cameo-of-sorts from William Hurt, the film has a lot going for while being faithful to the actual graphic novel of the same name. While for anyone interested in Cronenberg will find this film as a good start, it will also reveal how much of a brilliant storyteller he is. In the end, A History of Violence is without a doubt one of the year's best films.

David Cronenberg Films: Stereo - Crimes of the Future - Shivers - Rabid - Fast Company - The Brood - Scanners - Videodrome - The Dead Zone - The Fly (1986 film) - Dead Ringers - Naked Lunch - M. Butterfly - Crash - eXistenZ - Spider - Eastern Promises - A Dangerous Method - Cosmopolis - Maps to the Stars - Crimes of the Future (2022 film)

The Auteurs #26: David Cronenberg Pt. 1 - Pt. 2

© thevoid99 2011