Diane Bell’s second film melds her Masters degree in Mental Philosophy and her experience as a yogi in a film that thoughtfully, though somewhat obviously, questions the difference between living peacefully and living indifferently. The philosophical depth of the film remains somewhat shallow, building to an inevitable conclusion, albeit one that is incredibly satisfying. Bell, who also wrote the script, takes two modern opposites, a zen-like yoga instructor and an abused sex worker, to explore whether violence is an acceptable way to combat violence. Bell really only skims the surface of so broad a question, however, by providing a scenario where very few alternatives are provided.

The yogi is May (Jessica Biel), a yoga instructor about to open her own studio with her boyfriend Dex (Edi Gathegi). She’s been trying to track down her birth family and finally gets real news from the private investigator, she has a sister, and she’s not very far away. Despite Dex’s cavalier comments that May should wait to reach out to her newfound sister so she’s not distracted from their work, May can’t wait to connect with the sister she never had. Appearing on her doorstep her sister Susan (Zosia Mamet), or Shiva as her friends call her, is just as surprised to learn about May. Their mother died when Shiva was young, and she was put into the foster system and then fell in with her current boyfriend Cody (Joe Anderson), an emotionally and physically abusive type.

In trying to connect with her sister, May quickly learns Shiva has led a very different life then her own and is currently in a bad spot. Shiva, without any shame, admits to being a sex worker, Cody serving as her pimp, and makes it clear to May she doesn’t require any saving. May and Shiva get away for a night to May’s mother’s house in Santa Barbara without telling their respective significant others. May seems to want to hide from the results of the success she’s built, and Shiva may or may not be taking advantage of May’s good intentions.

Their bond appears to be mostly built on their shared bloodline, their obvious cultural differences being what they are. But when things start to heat up for Shiva, as Cody’s jealousy of her new relationship gets dark, and as all the privileged people in May’s life encourage her to turn a blind eye and ignore Shiva’s situation, the tension inside of May builds to a breaking point. Though it’s less a breaking point, and more a path that has been rather clearly laid out for her.

Biel and Mamet have an easy chemistry, if not especially strong. Biel hasn’t played this squeaky clean since 7th Heaven, and Mamet shreds her vapid, material girl image as Shoshanna from Girls well enough, aided by some heavy eyeliner. Her ambiguity and Neither of them seems too far out of their comfort zone, but play their parts well. Unfortunately the other characters play their roles with clear intention to serve their purpose to the story.

May’s mother, played by Kate Burton, is clearly sheltered, treating Shiva with clear disdain, and keeping her conversation with May focused on her intentions to re-decorate her already up-to-date manicured bedroom. Dax is so un-supportive it’s hard to believe May and he are destined to last, and he serves to push May away conveniently. And Cody is so blatantly abusive, one can hardly imagine a different fate for him.

The film, much of which is spent in May’s awesome vintage car, keeps up its rather neutral stance with some similarly neutral tones. The music also present, but un-intruding. It feels as though Bell was maybe attempting some juxtaposition between May’s zen-like life and Shiva’s chaotic and violent one, but she could have taken it a few notches further to better effect. But for all of its line-riding, Bleeding Heart does still feel especially gratifying in its conclusion. Bell tells a predictable tale, but it comes as a good reminder. She may not be trying to win the war on complacency, but she provides a soft-spoken genuflection toward the power of community.

Many film fans are familiar with the work of the late novelist Patricia Highsmith, whether they know it or not, as her books have been adapted into several films including the Alfred Hitchcock classic Strangers on a Train, and the not as classic Matt Damon-lead The Talented Mr. Ripley. The most recent Highsmith film adaptation, Hossein Amini’s The Two Faces of January, has been making the festival rounds and will be showing at the LA Film Festival in June.

Now, another one of the well-loved author’s novels is set for adaptation with a cast led by Patrick Wilson, Jessica Biel, Imogen Poots, and Toby Jones. The as-of-yet untitled adaptation of Highsmith’s novel The Blunderer will be directed by Andy Goddard. Killer Films’ Christine Vachon & David Hinojosa are attached to produce, and Sierra Pictures is set to finance the psychological thriller, which will search for buyers in Cannes.

Production company Killer Films has a history of facilitating filmmakers in preparing their first or second features. Just since 2013 the production company has worked with John Krokidas (Kill Your Darlings), Lance Edmands (Bluebird), Andrew T. Betzer (Young Bodies Heal Quickly), Tristan Patterson (Electric Slide), and Jason Stone (the upcoming film The Calling) in getting their first films made. While director Andy Goddard is far from inexperienced (having directed a lot of television including several Downton Abbey episodes) this will only be his second feature film, and his first American-made movie.

Production is slated to start on this film later this year.

Source: Deadline

Emanuel and the Truth about Fishes

Sitting in the 9am screening of Francesca Gregorini’s Emanuel and the Truth about Fishes, I was surrounded by sleepy film fans and people uncertain of what to expect from what they were about to see. Myself, I had taken an interest in Gregorini’s film as soon as I saw the synopsis hit the Sundance web page late last year. I then watched the interview with her on the Sundance YouTube channel and became increasingly eager to see her story.

Emanuel and the Truth about Fishes was an incredible artistic, poignant and heartfelt tale drawing upon Gregorini’s personal issues about loss, guilt and pain whilst focusing on the courage to overcome individual trauma. The narrative also highlights the strong emotional connection humans can hold for each other, and in Emanuel’s case (portrayed by Kaya Scodelario), the effects on a troubled child longing to find a mother figure in her life.

Emanuel meets Linda (Jessica Biel), the mysterious lady who moves in next door, she is a new mother it would seem and Emanuel is instantly intrigued by this woman. Their relationship grows when Emanuel volunteers to babysit Linda’s newborn baby, and develop an affectionate bond towards each other.

Kaya Scodelario is the heart of this story, her emotion is so unbelievably real throughout the entire film – if not lead astray by Hollywood, her career will only continue to progress and her performances, excel. Many closed-minded men may disagree as the film was extremely feminine and focused on trauma only women can really relate to. Others that may focus more on dialogue could find faults within the screenplay as some criticized it as being very “written after attending a screenwriting seminar” feel. However, Emanuel and the Truth about Fishes is overall a fantastic achievement for Francesca Gregorini and an absolute pleasure to watch.

RATING: 9.4

A.C.O.D

Going into this film I undoubtedly had expectations in regards to it being a comedy, as the chosen cast were renowned for their humour. Adam Scott and Amy Poehler work as such an amazing comedic couple in Parks and Recreation that knowing their characters were the complete opposite of that in A.C.O.D, where Poehler is now Scott’s stepmother – I expected hilarity to ensue. Ultimately I was very disappointed with the lack of overall chemistry of the cast. That said however, I did enjoy A.C.O.D as it was a ‘good’ comedy; it just didn’t utilize the actors’ comedic potential enough.

Carter (Adam Scott) was unknowingly part of a research study focusing on observing Children of Divorce when he was younger; in fact the woman investigating this study, Dr Judith (Jane Lynch) wrote a book about him and other children involved. As Carter’s brothers wedding in announced and the preparation commences, Carter is responsible for getting his parents to be civil towards each other ready for the ‘big day’. This results in extremely comedic scenes and Carter eventually getting in touch with his old therapist, Dr Judith.

Scott was the perfect guy to represent the awkwardness of Carter’s character as his blunt and dry self-conscious sense of humour really highlights the effects of the trauma he is undergoing through his parents messy relationship.

Although A.C.O.D was not my favourite film of the day, nor is it one likely watch again – I’d certainly say it’s worth seeing at least once. It gives you the chance to see the diversity of Adam Scott’s abilities as an actor as they really shine through, and there are some real classic comedic moments that shouldn’t be overlooked.

RATING: 7.6

Mud

Mud is a story focused on a compassionate fugitive deserted on a lonely island surrounded by the Mississippi Rivers. This is until two adventurous young boys stumble across this rugged man whilst trying to salvage a lost boat. The two boys, Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and his best friend Neckbone (Jacob Lofland) are hesitant when they first meet Mud, as he is an unkempt looking man, whose sun dyed skin and worn out appearance gives them reason for caution – that and the fact he has a pistol tucked into his trousers. Mud introduces himself and tells the boys that he is waiting for a woman to meet him and asks if they could bring him food the next time they visit the island.

Tye under the impression that Mud is undergoing this hardship for love wants to help him and Neckbone being his best friend agrees to assist Tye in doing so. There are certain scenes that highlight the personalities of these two young boys and these are what made the film – their chemistry and on screen relationship has been likened to the young boys in Stand by Me.

Illustrating immersive imagination and extracting impeccable performances from all members of the cast, Jeff Nichols did a fantastic job representing a carefully constructed Deep South dramatic feature. Mud will do extremely well through it festival experiences, and will, without a doubt make it onto the big screen with huge success.

RATING: 8.6

Pascal Laugier arrived on the horror scene in the same way an 18-wheeler ‘arrives’ through a brick wall when he released Martyrs in 2008. Part of the French new wave of horror that included Inside, Frontier(s) and High Tension, it was by far the most violent and provocative film to come out of France’s horror revival. Four years later Laugier returns with The Tall Man, an ambitious yet flawed horror film that doesn’t show much progress since Martyrs.

Taking place in a small US mining town called Cold Rock (which is obviously Canada), The Tall Man’s title is explained through a series of news broadcasts showing a large number of missing child reports. Every few months a child vanishes from Cold Rock without a trace, and the townspeople talk about a tall man who snatches the children away. The first act establishes how Cold Rock is a ghost town now that its mines are shut down. Julia (Jessica Biel), the town’s only nurse, spends her time helping out the poverty-stricken community while mourning the loss of her husband. Julia is now raising her son with a young babysitter (Eve Harlow) until one night when Julia sees the titular tall man taking her child away.

At this point there’s no need to explain any more plot details in The Tall Man. Part of what made Martyrs so surprising was the way Laugier appeared to hit a reset button halfway through the film, redefining it on a scale far greater than its simple revenge story. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that The Tall Man utilizes the same tactic, except this time the reset button is hit repeatedly. Laugier structures the film in a way that constantly re-defines the story, taking genre conventions and completely throwing them out at every possible opportunity. Each new plot development adds to the lunacy until we’re so far removed from the film’s original set-up that it feels like an entirely different movie is playing. While none of it makes any sense, viewers will be on their toes throughout trying to figure out what’s going on.

Once Laugier finally pulls back the curtain, The Tall Man falls flat on its face. Like Martyrs, social commentary is thrown in (this time it’s political rather than spiritual/religious) which screeches everything to a halt. Some amount of admiration should be given to Laugier for having the balls to attempt what he’s doing here, but his ideas are flat-out stupid. The ludicrous final act is only made worse by its self-serving tone. The film is trying to get people to really think about what it’s saying, but if anyone tried to think about it for more than a few seconds the message would easily fall apart.

After its premiere at this year’s SXSW festival, critics seemed baffled by The Tall Man. While it may feel completely different from Martyrs (especially with the lack of gore), both films share an ambitious scale and defiance of genre conventions. The Tall Man’s twists and turns make for a fun time, but its attempts at provocation fail miserably. Laugier’s ambitions are commendable, but they just don’t succeed.

Based off a Pulitzer Prize winning short story, The Illusionist is a film about a magician who must overcome class struggle throughout his life in order to win the hand of his lover. Not only are the illusions mysterious but so are some of the events that occur in the magician’s life. Both Edward Norton and Paul Giamatti give solid performances in this magic themed film.

Taking place around the turn of the last century, Eisenheim the Illusionist (Edward Norton) is traveling around on tour showcasing his masterful illusions to many stunned audiences. His audience seems to grow with each new show and when his tour comes to Vienna, he gets an opportunity to perform for Crown Prince Leopold (Rufus Sewell). That is where things start to get interesting.

In a series of flashbacks, we see a young Eisenheim, who at that time went by his real name, Edward. As a young child he had been fascinated by magic and had been trying to perfect it since. His family was poor and his childhood love was a young duchess named Sophie (Jessica Biel). It almost goes without saying but their love was frown upon by others. So at an early age they separated from one another.

Crown Prince Leopold prides himself on logic and believes he can solve how Eisenheim does his illusions. When the audience is asked for a volunteer, the crown prince sends up his fiancée-to-be. As she gets onto the stage Eisenheim suddenly realizes who she is, his long-last lady love Sophie.

Eisenheim quickly learns of her intent to marry the crown prince just as the crown prince learns about Sophie and Eisenheim’s past. Both have their own plans to take each other out and win over the girl. Leopold gets the Chief Inspector Uhl (Paul Giamatti) to follow Eisenheim and find out how he performs his illusions. By doing this he hopes he can expose and thus discredit Eisenheim as a magician.

Things take a turn when Sophie turns up dead soon after refusing Leopold. Eisenheim has his own plan to use Inspector Uhl to find evidence about the case that will expose Leopold as a murderer. Uhl has always been fond of Eisenheim but now has an internal struggle between helping Eisenheim or helping Leopold which could grant him more power.

The Illusionist is based on a short story called Eisenheim the Illusionist by Steven Millhauser and feels more like a fairy tale than it does a film. This may be because of how unbelievable the illusions that Eisenheim performs. Such as an orange tree growing out of a pot that produces real oranges in a matter of a minute all while butterflies hover above it. It also may feel like a fairy tale because the story centers on a poor boy and a rich girl that know their love is true but stands in their way is a socially powerful man.

Edward Norton shines in the lead role as the witty and charming illusionist. He even did many of his own magic tricks in the film. Jessica Biel does not stand out but is not given much chance even though two men fighting over her is the central plot. On the other hand, Paul Giamatti may have stood out the most. I think Giamatti had the best performance in this film and further proving he is an under-rated actor.

It may be unfair to compare films, but it is hard to ignore it when the both The Illusionist and The Prestige both came out in 2006 and are both about magicians. Even their titles are somewhat similar. They both were nominated for the same award at the 2007 Academy Awards, Best Achievement in Cinematography, which they both lost. In my opinion, I believe Christopher Nolan’s The Prestige to be the better of the two. Each has their own uniqueness and qualities but The Prestige did most of them better.

The Illusionist is an aesthetically pleasing fairy tale-like film. As a viewer, we are like the audience in the film. We watch Eisenheim perform his illusions and wonder whether or not they are supernatural or not as we try to figure out the trick. Unfortunately, the middle act of the film drags on a bit especially compared to the romantic filled beginning and ending acts. Which would not have been such a problem if the connection between Sophie and Eisenheim did not slip as the focus of the film.