Nocturnal Animals Review TIFF
The Plot
Art gallery owner Susan Morrow (Amy Adams) receives a manuscript from her ex-husband (Jake Gyllenhaal) and becomes engrossed in the story while she struggles with her deterioriating marriage with businessman Hutton (Armie Hammer).
The Good
Seven years after the success of his directorial debut, A Single Man, writer-director Tom Ford returns with an adaptation of Austin Wright’s 1993 novel, Tony and Susan. When Susan is given a manuscript from ex-husband Edward, titled after his nickname for her, Nocturnal Animals, she becomes absorbed with the story and concocts her own version inside her head. In this story within the story, the main character, Tony is envisioned as a bearded Edward, who goes on a journey of revenge with Michael Shannon’s Detective Andes after a late night drive ends disastrously for his wife and daughter (played by Isla Fisher and Ellie Bamber respectively).
Meanwhile in the ‘real world’, Susan begins to reminisce about her relationship with Edward and how their marriage unravelled, as her current marriage starts to unravel also.
Ford manages to balance both storylines with ease, though the world set inside the manuscript feels much more detailed than that of its real world counterpart. This is no doubt due to the powerhouse performances from both Gyllenhaal and Shannon. That said however, Amy Adams manages to bring enough to the table to make her side of the plot interesting too.
The Bad
There’s really not much to complain about with Fords latest. Other than the previously discussed lack of any real interesting plot in its real world storyline, despite Adams’ best efforts. While the two are well balanced, with the manuscript plot given more screen time as it rightly deserves, it can be argued that sticking with just the manuscript storyline could have made Nocturnal Animals an even more engrossing film than it already is, but that would mean ditching the wonderful Amy Adams…
The Ugly Truth
Adams tries her best which is better than most other actresses could have done with this storyline, but unfortunately she is overshadowed by the powerhouse double performance from Jake Gyllenhaal and the addition of Michael Shannon in its more intriguing plot.
Manchester By The Sea Review TIFF
The Plot
An Uncle (Casey Affleck) is asked to take care of his teenage nephew (Lucas Hedges) after the boy’s father dies.
The Good
Casey Affleck gives his career best performance in this small but powerful story of family and loss. Set years after a tragedy has befallen him, Lee Chandler (Affleck) returns to his hometown to settle his brother’s affairs after he dies. Instead he discovers that he has been named as the legal guardian to his nephew, Patrick (Hedges) and is expected to relocate to Manchester By The Sea to raise him, leaving behind a life of solitude he was content with and returning to face demons of his past.
While Affleck brings an intense sense of loneliness with perfect precision, it is enhanced by the acting skills of Hedges who manages to give as good as he gets alongside Affleck. With Lee unprepared for dealing with bringing up a grieving teenage boy, and Patrick struggling to come to terms with the loss of his father, these two characters bring a melancholy sense of despair between them.
Also of note is the addition of Michelle Williams as Lee’s wife, Randi. Williams doesn’t get as much screen time as her male co-stars but the time she is allowed is not left to waste with one particularly heart-breaking scene with Affleck becoming instantly memorable before it’s even over.
Writer-director Kenneth Lonergan’s third directed film manages to bring a cold and desolate story to the screen in every way possible thanks to cinematographer Jody Lee Lipes’ (Martha Marcy May Marlene) dull tones of a wintery Manchester By The Sea.
The Bad
As mentioned above, Williams doesn’t get much screen time in the films 137 minute runtime, which makes the film feel much emptier than it could have been where she given more room to breathe. Lonergan manages to bring awards worthy performances to the screen which is still a triumph, but the spotlight seems to drown Affleck in the spotlight and only gives Williams the briefest of light.
The Ugly Truth
Lonergan directs this cold and heart-breaking film which succeeds in bringing career best performances particularly from Casey Affleck. While Michelle Williams brings a performance just as strong, it is focused on a little less than it should have been.
Arrival Review & Interviews TIFF
The Plot
A linguist (Amy Adams) is recruited by the military to assist in translating alien communications.
The Good
Unlike most alien invasion movies, Arrival features no real destruction, instead only bringing tension and beautiful cinematography. More Close Encounters than Independence Day. The story kicks off with Amy Adams’ Dr. Louise Banks suffering from the loss of her daughter in a truly touching opening sequence which manages to bring immense feeling to the screen thanks in part to Jóhan Jóhannsson’s melancholy score which is used consistently throughout, before moving swiftly along to the titular arrival of a dozen separate slender spaceships dotted around various places of the world. With the human race struggling to figure out what their new visitors intentions are, Colonel Webber (Forest Whitaker) enlists the help of Louise and theoretical physicist Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner) to translate and converse with the aliens that Ian dubs ‘Heptapods’ in reference to their seven tentacles.
With director Denis Villeneuve set to bring us his take on the Blade Runner sequel next, Arrival is most certainly a promising precursor to his style of sci-fi filmmaking that gives hope for the much anticipated sequel. The stunning cinematography from Bradford Young, whose previous credits include Selma and A Most Violent Year manage to tease the aliens perfectly while not coming off as cheating the audience of the reveal.
The Bad
Those going into Arrival hoping for action of any sort are sure to be sorely disappointed. Screenwriter Eric Heisserer’s script, adapted from Ted Chiang’s short story Story of Your Life is instead a thought provoking and at times slow moving but ultimately satisfying story that will stay with you in the same way that sci-fi like 2001: A Space Odyssey does.
The Ugly Truth
Amy Adams leads a well cast film and practically laps them in terms of acting ability. Though it may be too slow and less action packed for some of the more impatient audience, if you stick with it you’re sure to have a new film to add to your favourites list.
Una Review TIFF
The Plot
When a young woman (Rooney Mara) unexpectedly arrives at an older man’s (Ben Mendelsohn) workplace, looking for anwers, the secrets of the past threaten to unravel his new life. Their confrontation will uncover buried memories and unspeakable desires. It will shake them both to the core.
The Good
Rooney Mara and Ben Mendelsohn give two incredibly strong performances in this adaptation of David Harroway’s play, Blackbird. Set mainly in the wide open spaces of a warehouse closing down for the day, Una sees its titular character (Mara) coming face to face with Peter (Mendelsohn) otherwise known as Ray, a convicted paedophile who was locked away for his sexual abuse of Una at age 13.
For the most part, Una relies heavily on its two main actors, with dialogue heavy scenes which are effective thanks to the raw emotions brought by Mara and Mendelsohn.
The Bad
Were it not for its enigmatic lead performances, Una would have been much more effective in a Sunday night slot on ITV than on a cinema screen. While Harroway’s script is enthralling, its setting does not translate as well on screen as it does on stage, with Peter/Ray running around the warehouse he works in, attempting to avoid colleagues and his boss while he tries to deal with the sudden arrival of Una.
Meanwhile, Una is left to roam around the warehouse in what feels like a scenario consistently growing increasingly preposterous. Also of note is Riz Ahmed as Scott, a colleague of Peter. Ahmed is, as always, an instantly intriguing character if somewhat criminally underused in this story. Had his character been given more to do than just to lead Una towards the films finale which breaks out of the warehouse, it could have given the whole story more gravitas.
While Una tackles a serious subject, it rarely finds out what route it wants to take and when it does it becomes all the more unsettling. Serving as almost a sex abusing apologist play.
The Ugly Truth
While the initial plot is intriguing, not even its enigmatic stars and the raw emotion they bring to the screen are enough to fill out what is essentially an ITV Sunday night special.
Free Fire Review TIFF
The Plot
Set in 1978 Boston, a disagreement turns into a full-on shootout when a gang of criminals gather in a warehouse for an arms deal.
The Good
Fresh off 2015’s High-Rise, director Ben Wheatley teams up with co-writer Amy Jump and returns to the seventies in this star studded action which comes across as Reservoir Dogs on drugs. Cillian Murphy, Armie Hammer and Sharlto Copley lead the cast to begin with, as crooks Chris (Murphy) and Ord (Hammer) who meet arms dealer Vernon (Copley) in an abandoned warehouse to purchase guns from him. Joining them are Sam Riley (Control), Brie Larson (Room), and Jack Reynor (Sing Street), to name a few, who, before long begin a shootout of epic proportions.
It’s hard to pick standout performances from the frankly wonderful cast with the violence bringing them all together in one bloody mess, making Free Fire one of the best ensemble pieces you will see this year without a doubt. You can’t talk about Sharlto Copley’s brilliant performance as the wickedly hilarious Vernon without mentioning the more restrained acting of Armie Hammer’s Ord or Jack Reynor’s frequently frustrated Harry. Wheatley knows his cast and has highlighted their strengths perfectly with each character.
The Bad
Unfortunately, a fun 90 minute bullet ridden ride in an abandoned warehouse doesn’t manage to become anything more interesting. In a post Reservoir Dogs world, Free Fire serves as a wonderful option to double bill the two, with many matching ideas such as the films real-time progress which stays neatly inside the confines of the warehouse. This however makes the film feel much more trapped than something like Reservoir Dogs which at least had a few flashback scenes to fill its story out.
The Ugly Truth
Ben Wheatley deserves credit for his perfect casting of this band of misfits with his and Jump’s screenplay managing to find its way through the mess of bullets and blood with ease. It’s just a shame that there isn’t more meat to the story.