The Town is Like Any Other Town

The Town

Can anyone name a member of the National Board of Review? Who are they? And why do so many film lovers, myself included, go into hysterics once they release their annual best of the year list? Despite not knowing who actually comprises the NBR, their annual best of list marks the official start of the three month long award season. Though I normally agree with their selections, there have been times when the NBR has unjustly raised my hopes for a film. Such was the case with the cops and robbers caper, The Town. As The Town made NBR’s top ten list this year, I was expecting the film to have something truly magical. That special moment which made The Town standout above the other 250 films that the NBR screened this year. Instead, The Town ended up being a standard crime film with a few well shot action sequences.

Set in the Charlestown section of Boston, notoriously known for the high percentage of criminals it produces, The Town follows a group of friends as they try to elude the FBI while going after one final score. Ring leader Doug MacRay (Ben Affleck) is starting to tire of the criminal lifestyle. Although good at what he does, he knows that if he stays in Charlestown he will end up behind bars like his father, Stephen (Chris Cooper). Doug envisions a better life for himself after meeting Claire (Rebecca Hall), who happens to be the manager of a bank MacRay’s team has robbed. While Doug longs for a life outside of Charlestown, his best friend James (Jeremy Renner) wants the team to continue their streak of bank robberies. With FBI Agent Frawley (John Hamm) closing in on the gang, Doug must decide where is loyalties truly lie.

The Town is a decent, if not predictable, crime movie. What makes the film work for the most part are the performances from the cast. Not to mention the skilled direction of Ben Affleck. Affleck proved with his directorial debut, and vastly superior film, Gone Baby Gone, that he knows how to get strong performances out of his cast. I especially enjoyed the work of Pete Postlethwaite and Chris Cooper in their very brief cameos. I also like how Affleck orchestrates his action sequences. The heist scenes, particularly the one that evolves into a brilliant car chase scene with the gang evading the cops in a minivan. These are easily the most tenses moments in the entire film.

So why did this film not “wow” me the way it did the NBR? I just could not get past its predictability. Not to mention that The Town has too many loose ends which are never fully realized. The two most interesting aspects of the story are Doug’s relationship with his father, and the father’s past with Fergus (Postlethwaite). Unfortunately we only get a small snippet of the father/son arc. The audience must rely on Fergus to shed further light into Stephen’s defeated state. Yet Fergus is introduced far too late in the picture. The Town spends so much time building up both the love story and the Doug/Agent Frawley angle that the sudden appearance of Fergus towards the end seems rather out of place. Either introduce Fergus sooner, and cut down on the pointless Krista (Blake Lively) plotline, or leave both him and Stephan out of the picture completely.

As heist films go, The Town is enjoyable as it often feels like a lighter version of Michael Mann’s Heat. The film works best if you temper your expectations. If you go in expecting anything more you will be greatly disappointed. Many are calling The Town one of the year’s best films, but it is ultimately nothing more than a competent crime film that may keep you entertained for a few hours. 

Wild Thing You Make My Heart Sing

I attended the 1st Annual Autumn Harvest Short Film Festival this past weekend. Orchestrated by Damien Dornford, the festival not only showcased up-and-coming filmmakers but also raised money for The Children’s Aid Foundation charity as well. 15 short films, ranging from almost every genre you can think of, were screened for a very lively audience. Be sure to keep an eye of for future installments of this festival as it should not be missed.

Where the Wild Things Are

By the time the ending credits started to role on Spike Jonze’s latest work, Where the Wild Things Are, I was not sure how to process what I had just witnessed. The film was the complete opposite of what I had expected. After reflecting on the film over the last couple of days, it became very apparent that it has been quiet sometime since a live action children’s film really stuck with me like this did.

Adapted from Maurice Sendak's classic children's story, Where the Wild Things Are follows a young boy on a fantastical journey of self-discovery. Feeling isolated from his older sister, Max (Max Records) only has his mother (Catherine Keener) to cling to. Yet when Max’s mom invites her new boyfriend (Mark Ruffalo) over for dinner, Max fears that even she has giving up on him. After running away from home, Max comes across a small sailboat at a local dock. The boat eventually leads Max to a mysterious island where monstrous Wild Things roam. After tricking the Wild Things, most notably Carol (James Gandolfini), into believing he posses magical powers, Max is crowned king of the group. Max soon realizes that even on a mysterious island you cannot runaway from your problems.

While Sendak’s children’s story is considered to be a classic by many, do not go into this film expecting a standard children’s flick. One of the brilliant aspects to this film is that it defies many of the conventions you are use to seeing in most kid’s films nowadays. Hollywood has pushed so many traditional children’s pictures, especially of the animated and/or talking animal kind, down our throats over the last few years that it actually takes a bit of time to truly adjust to the different tone and rhythm of this film. Which is one reason I think this film will catch many off guard in several sections. Where the Wild Things Are is far darker than you initially think it will be. Even the wonderfully dark film, Coraline, seems downright sunny in comparison. Jonze not only captures the dark tones of the source material but he actually engulfs himself in it. Despite the fun Max seems to have with his new found friends, you always feel that Max is walking a very fine line. There is a constant uneasiness that, at any moment, either Judith or Carol will make good on their threats of eating Max.

Jonze is able to create this world that both horrifying and invigorating for a child, through the use of life size puppets and subtle special effects. Despite the fantastical aspect of the Wild Things mere existence the bulk of their world, and of Max’s imagination, is grounded in reality. In many ways the use of full size puppets and realism reminded me of some of beloved childhood films of my youth (e.g. The Neverending Story, Dark Crystal, etc). In an era where children are mainly marketed animated movies in 3D, it is nice to see a filmmaker not afraid to buck the trend. What makes Jonze’s accomplishment even bolder is the fact that all of the Wild Things have their own identifiable qualities. Although not all get equal screen time, you still get a strong understanding of both their unique personalities; and the overall role each plays in the group. Spike Jonze skillfully shows us how each one is a reflection of the different stages of Max’s current life. Although big and fearsome at times, the Wild Things are struggling with issues of family, loneliness, love, having their voices heard, etc. Max naively thinks that by being in charge he can fix in them everything that he fears in himself. Yet as the Wild Things world seemingly get worse it becomes clear to Max that life in general was never simple to begin with. It is this realization in Max, and the audience, that allows the abrupt ending to make perfect sense. Jonze does care about wrapping things up perfectly because that is not how life works.

There are times when Spike Jonze's unique voice makes the film a little too stylized for its own good. Certain freeze frames and camera tricks take you out of the picture momentarily instead of pulling you in further. Personally I think such techniques will probably play much smoother on repeat viewings. Regardless, I am willing to let these moments slide though as the majority of the film both engaging and visually stunning. Although this is one of the better children’s films released this year, parents should note that the film is too disturbing for really young children. Older kids should not have any problems with the material as Where the Wild Things Are perfectly captures the complexities of childhood without talking down to its audience. Jonze has made yet another good film that, similar to Sendak’s original work, will probably be analyzed for generations to come.




The Full List Of Big Thoughts From A Small Mind's 2009 Reviews.

Lovely Time In New York

New York, I Love You

From the creators behind the Paris Je T’aime comes the second film in the “love series”. Similar to Paris Je T’aime, New York, I Love You features numerous vignettes on the subject of love from 12 directors from around the world. These directors include: Mira Nair, Allen Hughes, Shekhar Kapur, Natalie Portman, Brett Ratner, and Scarlett Johansson just to name a few. The film also features an all star cast with the likes of: Julie Christie, Orlando Bloom, Natalie Portman, Shia LaBeouf, Ethan Hawke, Andy Garcia, Maggie Q, Chris Cooper, Justin Bartha, Robin Wright Penn, Blake Lively, Christina Ricci, John Hurt, Bradley Cooper, Anton Yelchin, Jame Caan, Kevin Bacon, Hayden Christensen, etc.

Personally I found the majority of the shorts hit the mark. There were five or so in particular that were blisteringly funny. One of my favourite vingnettes included, surprising enough, Brett Ratner’s segment with Anton Yelchin. Yelton plays a boy who is stuck taking a girl (Olivia Thrilby) in a wheelchair to the prom. Yelchin and Thrilby give great performance that are sure to have you laughing hard by time you reach the end. Some other standout segments include Mira Nair’s short with Natalie Portman, Yvan Attal’s with Ethan Hawke and Maggie Q, and Shekhar Kapur's with Shia LaBeouf and Julie Christie.

To be honest only a few segments really fizzle out. The weakest one being Scarlett Johansson’s Coney Island segment which stars Kevin Bacon. I have read recently that this segment has been left out of the latest version of the film (I saw the version screened at TIFF 08). Word is it will be on the dvd edition of the film. Which is fitting when you really think about it, the short is not bad but it does not fit with the overall production. It really does slow down the pacing of the film. New York, I Love You is another enjoyable installment in the growing love series. I am looking forward to seeing what the next two installments, set in Jerusalem and Singapore respectively, will bring.