Power and Terror: Noam Chomsky in Our Times

Starring: Noam Chomsky, Carol Chomsky, Directed: John Junkerman, Distributed: First Run Features, Released: 2003, Running Time: 72 mins

Story:

Documentary filmmaker John Junkerman takes a look at a series of lectures and talks by Noam Chomsky following the events of 9/11 to show us the way in which Chomsky views power and terror as it happens and has in the world.

Review:

Noam Chomsky is constantly named as an important academic figure and speaker, Power and Terror reveals just why. Material taken from speeches and lectures given after 9/11, Chomsky addresses with finesse and character the subjects of power and corruption and how it all ties in with ideas of terror and terrorism that are prevalent in the world today.

Director John Junkerman takes us into the world of Chomsky, offering us some of his most insightful views and musings on power struggles, war and terror/terrorism. He takes material from his own interview with Chomsky, as well as footage from behind the scenes, to tell us a story behind power and the needs for war from the World Wars till today in Iraq. Junkerman paints Chomsky as a man who dares to speak his mind and be critical on subjects like American politics, questionable Western thought and US involvement in war past and present. Chomsky never hides away. Interviews and conferences the film explores allow us to see Chomsky as a man that is funny, social and relatable in his manner and public demeanour, but then is eloquently spoken and meditative on his teaching and learnings, opening and suggesting new avenues of thought people are less inclined to pursue.

Chomsky tells it like it is. Paraphrasing his archival knowledge on these subjects, his words invite an audience in, allowing them to see the world as he has. At times taking aim at the Vietnam War and Iraq War he gives his audiences a revealing perspective on power and terrorism, making one think what war is really about, and the motives behind it all. Delivering his word with calm authority, his open-minded view of the world parts a sea of pessimism that has shrouded the world and gives us some hope for the future. Opting for his unusual brand of humuor to perk a crowd, he injects life into dark and foreboding times and lightens the path for future endeavours.

Verdict:

Essential to read or see, Noam Chomsky has a voice that is unmatched, offering insightful and enlightening views that make you think.

Rating: ★★★★★

A Serious Man

Composed  By:

Writer: Joel and Ethan Coen, Directed: Joel and Ethan Coen, Produced: Joel and Ethan Coen, Released 2009, Running Time: 106, Distributed: Focus Features.

Story:

Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg), a professor of physics, is abruptly informed by his wife Judith (Sari Lennick) that she is leaving him and needs a get, a Jewish divorce, so she can marry her lover, the widower Sy Ableman (Fred Melamed). Larry, his son Danny (Aaron Wolff) and brother Arthur (Richard Kind) must contend with constant conflict and complications in their lives, all seemingly without end in sight.

Review:

Tragically funny and at the same time sadly moving and emotional, Coen brothers Joel and Ethan make A Serious Man a film to run havoc and go crazy on your senses. At a point in the film you can be feeling a profound connection, a transcending sympathy to a character, and then fall victim to a steady cackle and cheeky grin, as you watch voyeuristically at their untimely misfortunate and often tragic situation in life.

A genius film by all means of the word A Serious Man is not a film to take lightly; it eases you in initially so it can tell the story as it is, a house in the suburbs, husband and wife in the midst of martial friction, nothing too out of ordinary, though in a split second it all changes right before your eyes. In a strange and bizarre turn of events Larry is abruptly told that he is being divorced, that he must produce a get so his wife can marry her lover, and that he be moved out of the house at the benefit of all but the victim, Larry himself.

Life hurdles towards a stream of catastrophic and disastrous outcomes for Larry, which we watch happily, waiting for that next moment that supersedes the last. It is a devilish movie in that we root for something bad to happen to him, it gives such comic relief to us and moments of ecstasy, as he and the others wriggle and squirm to survive.

A Serious Man paints a story about a family of men trapped in a vicious cycle, living almost stationary existences where they are at the mercy of those around them. After failing time and time again to rectify their problems and get beyond it all, they are sucked back down into the abyss and tormented even more for our enjoyment. Not without its share of dark and moving moments that can be taken away by you, it’s complicated for the sardonic and often parodising look at suburban life that has you laugh so hard that you forget just how wrong it really is.

Verdict:

If you are a Coen brothers fan, or can see the humour in other people’s misfortune, A Serious Man could be your cup of tea.

Rating: 9/10

Safe House

Composed By:

Directed: Daniel Espinosa, Produced: Scott Stuber, Written: David Guggenheim, Released: 2012, Running Time: 117, Distributed: Universal Pictures.

Story:

Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington), an ex-CIA agent and wanted criminal, acquires a file from an MI6 agent that has him tracked down by mercenaries and forced to seek refuge in an American Embassy. It leads him into the hands of CIA and low-level agent Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds), a man stationed to mind and monitor the safe house they take him to. Weston is made responsible for Frost after his team is killed, tied into a conspiracy by the CIA to silence Frost and then Weston as he learns about credible information Frost holds that could irrevocably ruin the agency.

Review:

Exhilarating till the end, Safe House is a film that will knock your socks off almost literally, it leaves your heart jumping out of your chest and pounding from excitement, and then there is there are those tense and suspenseful scenes that catch you off guard, shocked the hell out of me. It will have you latching yourself onto the armrests as you lap up all the excitement and energy that this movie has to offer you, tense car chases, barrage of bullets, and heart-stopping suspense to make your body tremble.

Director Daniel Espinosa has worked this movie to the bone, capturing some of the most enjoyable and heart palpitating scenes that can be imagined, suddenly a fast-paced scene in the thick of it falls into a dead silence where the action creeps up from beyond the frame and like a thump to your skull you are thrown back into the deep end. Safe House is made to take you on a merciless ride that only stops momentarily before it throws you back in the thick of it, rushing and racing along at an excitable pace that mimics a real life drama, only better.

Reynolds and Washington play off one another remarkably in this film, they excel in constructing for us a picturesque drama that only ups the ante until the breaking point in the film where all the pieces are set in place and the chips begin to fall. Reynolds demands attention in this film, and matches the stellar performance by Washington in the film and even that of Brendan Gleeson, a corrupt head CIA agent that hunts Frost down; they are all impeccable.

Safe House is a film to see for 2012, and not to be missed by anyone. It is one that I would like to see win a few awards and get the acknowledgement and praise it deserves.

Verdict:

Go see it now, don’t wait any longer, it is a must see. If you miss it you’ll be kicking yourself raw.

Rating: 10/10

You’ve Got Mail

Composed By:

Book: Parfumerie by Miklos Laszlo, Screenplay: Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron, Director: Nora Ephron, Producer: Nora Ephron, Released: 1998, Running Time: 119mins, Distributed: Warner Bros.

Story:

Joe Fox (Tom Hanks), a superstore book chain tycoon, befriends a woman through anonymous emails, sparking a connection and intimacy neither expect nor share in their actual lives. Kathleen Kelly (Mega Ryan), an independent bookstore owner confides openly online to Hanks, unbeknownst that he is her mystery lover.  Ryan and Hanks face a harsh reality that sees a closure to the much-loved store that Ryan owns for the new book chain, causing a discernable rift between the two, but amidst it all they still find love. Shock and awe ensue as they learn of each other’s identity, but the film stands to prove that love can triumph all woes in the end.

Review:

I can always appreciate a love story when it is told well, and in You’ve Got Mail, the formula has won me over. Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan are wondrous to watch on screen, their dynamic is beyond explanation, which is probably why Sleepless in Seattle hit home so well.

You’ve Got Mail is told in a way that is not at all sappy, it’s charming and even funny at times. Joe Fox, Hanks, strides around seeming all too pleased with himself, not at all this way when he speaks online, he is eloquent and endearing. Kathleen Kelly is likewise a more extroverted individual in her online persona but exists almost voiceless in her life, pushed down by her overpowering boyfriend who claims the spotlight. It is this precise element that brings the film its defining flavour and vigour, seeing these perfectly matched couple, that bring about the best in each other, split by dirty business that becomes particularly personal to Ryan’s character.

Nora Ephron (When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle) packages a love story in a neatly formed envelope that becomes unraveled throughout the film, showing the true influence and growth both force out of each other. Joe Fox learns how to bestow kindness and a proper sense of manners on people and Kathleen Kelly finds a voice to fight for what she believes in, what her wants and aspirations are. They turn each others greatest power on the other, he finds a place for her gentle and humble voice in his while she finds a way to use his confident and untamed voice, liberating her from constraint. Ephron pits them against each other but it doesn’t stop them from finding love in the end, instead it gives it much more value.

You’ve Got Mail is a film that contains something missing in latter interpretations, a relatable feel, and a truthful resonance. It stands the test of time and is still heartwarming. It has a timeless factor, we don’t see that enough.

Verdict:

You’ve Got Mail is a love story told simply and told well. If you don’t cry, at least you’ll laugh, with a box of tissues there beside you.

Rating: 8/10

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

Composed By:

Written and Directed: John Hughes, Produced: John Hughes and Tom Jacobson, Released: 1986, Running Time: 103 mins, Distributed: Paramount Pictures.

Story:

Ferris Bueller, a high school senior decides to skip a day of school to spend the day in downtown Chicago. Along for the ride are girlfriend Sloane Peterson (Mia Sara) and best friend Cameron Frye (Alan Ruck). Dodging the Dean Edward Rooney (Jeffrey Jones) scorned sister Jeanie (Jennifer Grey), and his parents, Ferris pulls off the most extravagant day imaginable.

Review:

Films like this are rarely seen these days, and none too often miss that mark which provides the timeless touch. Luckily, this makes Ferris Bueller’s Day Off the more memorable as a result.

Extraordinary to the end, protagonist Ferris Bueller has a live life to the full mantra behind all the action in the film, doing all that is humanly possible in one average school day, and then so much more. Intelligently written and mighty witty, the film takes you on a wondrous journey towards enlightenment and fulfillment…at least for some characters that is. John Hughes molds a film that both questions the monotony of everyday life and explores a vibrant culture and city in Chicago that Ferris reveals to us through his eyes, teaching us that a little fun is evidently therapeutic for the soul, and invigorating for life itself.

Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is a rebellious movie that says life is too short to stay stuck in school, and so it takes us through all of life’s little pots of gold that are to be enjoyed, all before the reality of the world places them back in check. Broderick, Ferris Bueller, breaks that forth wall constantly in the film and reaches out to us and involves us, his life is a translatable metaphor to our own lives, the feelings of being trapped or unfulfilled and then having to take those serious commitment to life goals and ambitions.

John Hughes tells a story of paramount importance, that we must break free of what is socially and morally correct and pave our own way in life, do all the things we want to do, be the person we aspire to be, not a carbon copy and boring drone. Hughes tells it with flare and racy excitement, as the three take to the streets of Chicago, learning some valuable lessons, finding a new lease on life, but just as key, having a mountain of fun along the way.

Verdict:

Whether you’re a John Hughes fan or not, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is a movie that caters to the rambunctious and rebellious side in all of us.

Rating: 9/10

Legend of the Guardians

COMPOSED BY:

Directed: Zack Snyder, Produced: Zareh Nalbandian, Screenplay: John Orloff & John Collee, Books: “Guardians of Ga’Hoole”, Kathryn Lasky, Music: David Hirschfelder & Adam Young (Owl City), Editing: David Burrows, Distributed: Warner Bros. 

Story:

Soren, a young owl, is taken hostage by evil owls called Pure Ones, but escapes to seek help from the Guardians of Ga’Hoolee, an ancient band of winged warriors told in stories from his childhood. Soren and the Guardians must battle the Pure Ones to save the owl kingdom and to free those imprisoned by them.

Review:

Legend of the Guardians is a movie that is fun for all, it will definitely keep the kids entertained, but it offers a whole lot more than just that.

Magic is woven into this animated film from Zac Synder, more popularly known for 300 and Watchmen, and it has the delicate touch and the attention to detail that have made all these films so great. It is an action-packed and never a dull moment to be had. The animation has a fine visual lens that sees into all areas of this film, even the massive battle that takes place towards the end and you almost feel like you can touch feathers. It is simply astonishing.

Author Kathyrn Lasky has provided such a marvelous landscape and world that is quite breathtaking, and screenplay writers John Orloff and Emil Stern have adapted this and captured this so well for this film. Its story has a Lord-of-the-Rings-esque likeness with all these small elements at work under the main plot; some turn from good to bad, others find that courage at the last moment, and there are those that fall in battle to our dismay. But mostly, why I seem to find it similar is its world filled with regions that have so differing types of owls and characteristic personas relative to that. It has been made well known in the film and this gives it an extraordinary dynamic has been given apt opportunity to be played out in the film, and we learn a lot from this.

Surprisingly in Legend of the Guardians there is no censor to the brutality in war and the scars that one has to carry in a war, whether physical or psychological. It took me back to see something so honest and with a refreshing candor that we don’t often see exhibited in films, especially of this nature, tailored for a young adult and child audience it would seem.

Verdict:

Legend of the Guardians is a must see film, it is brilliantly executed and not a moment goes by in the film that you are not amazed at what you see. I was hesitant to see it from word of mouth, but I’m glad that I did.

Rating: 9/10

The Inbetweeners Movie

Story: 

The boys head to Malia, Crete for a much needed holiday together, but all is not as expected. Love flourishes for the four boys, meeting a group of young girls who take a liking to them, but things don’t initially go down smoothly. It all finds its resolve in the end and each of the boys finds love, but these happen in the most unexpected ways you could ever imagine.

Review:

The Inbetweeners Movie is a surprisingly good watch; there are lots of laughs, plenty of crude jokes and a happy ending to an eventful trip for the boys, but there are some things I found to be quite poor for me and that stuck out in the film.

Will, Simon, Jay and Neil are charming as ever in The Inbetweeners Movie, cracking witty jokes left, right and centre they never miss a beat when it comes to the humour, always on the ball and frightfully funny.

Will is as annoying and frank as always in the movie, but he hits it up marvelously with Alison whom seems to see past the awkward speech and attitude and the chemistry between the two finds its suitable conclusion, with Alison giving Will the chance to be her boyfriend.

Jay, the sex nut, drops as many crude jokes as can ‘fit’ in the movie, and it is a hilarious sight to see him in action. Sex crazed and misguided, he leads himself into more trouble then he deserves, and this breaks him at least once in the film. Fruitless attempts to blend in as a normal guy see Jay stick more so to the outskirts then epicentre, but it is his attitude that causes him this strife. Jane, a larger than ordinary girl is brought into the movie to show Jay that although a girl may not be fit in his eyes, she can be exactly what he needs and wants. Jane is played perfectly, wild and alive, giving Jay a run for his money, but also, she brings out the sensitive side to him, and gets him out of his stereotypical habits and bad attitude.

Neil is a spirit without bounds, nothing holds him back and in The Inbetweeners Movie it is no exception, he is just plain funny. Neil takes things in his own stride; he shags some nanas, blasts everyone away with his horrendous dance moves and uses fake-tan on his face, all adding to and making it a ridiculously hilarious experience and a memorable trip to say the least.

Simon, the most normal one in the group is the one that seems to be the one most alone, he loses Carli his girlfriend just before their trip and can’t get over her, but a chance opportunity has presented itself with cringe worthy moments, as he tries to win her back, only to be saddened and embarrassed. Simon plays it so realistically as he puts himself on the line to have Carli, and he feel some sympathy for him. But Lucy, one of the four girls the boys partner with, takes a liking to Simon, having to take the brunt of his callousness and at times Simon just pushes her aside. Lucy stands by him though, and there are moments that shone through that show the connection felt and the truly deep feelings that they have for each other. Simon comes to see this, and as hilarious as the result is, it is sweet what he does for Lucy to prove his worth and rectify the situation, redeeming himself.

The Inbetweeners Movie is a good movie to watch, but I cannot fathom why they had to take such an approach to make Jane look like a fat undesirable woman, when in fact she is gorgeous and has a well-shaped figure. It is so redundant to take this view of larger girls, and seemed a bit of a step back for me in the film. Crude jokes on her behalf seemed a bit too surreal, not all people act like that. James too seemed too false for me too, men are indeed piggish like that but he was just nauseating at times, and too much of a blokes bloke. Besides these things, I found the movie to be good and filled to the brim with laughter. Beats a lot of movies out there now, go see it.

RATING: 7.5

All The President’s Men

Story: 

All The President’s Men takes a pivotal moment in political history, The Watergate Scandal, and teaches us about the incredible courage and dedication in two reporters to uncover a government conspiracy like none that had ever occurred.

Review:

Woodward and Bernstein, played by Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman, are the two men behind the investigation that tackle opposition from all directions to expose the truth and to bring those to justice as the threads begin to unravel and a nation-wide conspiracy is found.

Alan Palukaworks his craft into a story about government cover-up, beautifully enriching all the dark corners and eccentricities that make it so enticing and so gripping.

Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford take the helm with a force that cannot be stopped, the persistence and value for journalism some of the strong points that are explicitly shown in the film.

Jason Robards, playing the Washington Post’s editor Ben Bradlee is just marvelous and who is not to be reckoned with in the film. He is a man who prides himself on virtue, value and persistence for truth, and Robards does him a great justice in the film to articulate the true nature that is behind journalism practice.

Detailed with all characters and personifying the book All The President’s Men by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, All The Presidents Men takes a critical but yet crucial look into American government, conspiracy and cover-ups, speaking honestly but fairly in all accounts and never sensationalizing anything.

All The President’s Men takes no shortcuts to show us the final result, it builds up gradually the hardship and fatigue, the tired and disheveled looks, ways they lose hope, the human failures that strike back at them and the humiliation that they feel when they almost miss the mark.

Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein  are told and portrayed as almost polar opposites, Woodward is smart and ingenious, he plays the system strategically but Bernstein is not this, he is hard hitting and abrupt, pushing the envelope and stepping on toes to shake people up. Neither is told to be better, they are told just to be dedicated men that do what is necessary, but we see that both learn to adopt a median that has both approaches and this happens subconsciously. Bernstein’s phone call near the end shows us this, as does Woodward pressuring Deep Throat at the end too.

All The President’s Men is great piece of cinema that is timeless, it tells a story about adversity above all, and how the dedication and perseverance of two men revolutionised not just a way of life for journalists, but provided inspiration to those that followed.

RATING: 9.5/10