Ben Stiller goes all indie and dramatic with The Squid and the Whale director at the helm.
Stiller's Greenberg is a man in his 40s recovering from a recent mental breakdown who decides to 'do nothing for a while' and housesit for this successful brother. There, he starts an awkward romance with his brothers assistant (Greta Gerwig) and restrained quirkiness ensues.
Director Noah Baumbach keeps his latest effort relatively grounded, creating a character study of a person who is almost impossible to like. Greenberg is clearly damaged but his endless self-absorption makes it's hard to root for him to get better. Likewise, Gerwig's Florence is so weak-willed and insipid, submitting to sexual advances because it's easier than saying no, that it seems like neither character has any positive forward momentum. You dread the idea of them ending up together as surely she would be utterly subsumed by his egocentric world view.
It's a considerable achievement then that Greenberg remains watchable, even if the plot is limited and the characters insufferable. Stiller has never been better and there's able support from the likes of a wonderfully restrained Rhys Ifans and Jennifer Jason Leigh.
3.5/5
18.6.10
REVIEW - Brooklyn's Finest
Director Antoine Fuqua tries to recapture some of the Oscar-winning glory of 2001's Training Day with this gritty ensemble drama and is at least partly successful.
The interweaving tale of three unrelated New York City cops takes us into some very dark territory - particularly in the case of Ethan Hawke's character, a good man worn down by the demands of a large and ailing family. He gives a powerhouse performance, easily overshadowing a mis-cast Richard Gere and the inconsistent Don Cheadle and its good to see ever charismatic Wesley Snipes back in a theatrically-released film.
The visuals are strong and the violence overtly grim but ultimately it's the glut of clichés which spoils Brooklyn's Finest - first time feature writer Michael C. Martin peoples his script with overly familiar types right through to the dramatic but utterly predictable finale. Watchable but flawed.
3/5
The interweaving tale of three unrelated New York City cops takes us into some very dark territory - particularly in the case of Ethan Hawke's character, a good man worn down by the demands of a large and ailing family. He gives a powerhouse performance, easily overshadowing a mis-cast Richard Gere and the inconsistent Don Cheadle and its good to see ever charismatic Wesley Snipes back in a theatrically-released film.
The visuals are strong and the violence overtly grim but ultimately it's the glut of clichés which spoils Brooklyn's Finest - first time feature writer Michael C. Martin peoples his script with overly familiar types right through to the dramatic but utterly predictable finale. Watchable but flawed.
3/5
REVIEW - Sex and the City 2
HBO fans of the world unite - did you like 'Rome'? How about the superlative 'Deadwood' or the potential splendour of 'Carnivale'?
Well do you know what you can have instead of a satisfying, plot resolving resolution to any of those fine series' - you can listen to an octogenarian harridan screaming 'Lawrence of my labia' while squirming in vomit-inducing pleasure. You can also marvel at the scene where it's difficult to tell the difference between a group of camels and the increasingly leather-skinned ladies or the frankly insulting fiddly-jig which plays every time a braless Irish nanny takes to the screen.
On the small screen, 'SATC' was acerbically sharp, envelope-pushing and BLISSFULLY SHORT! After two and a half hours of adventures in international ignorance and sexual encounters that threaten the gag reflex, you'll be hard pushed to remember what made these girls so fantastic the first time round.
0/5
Well do you know what you can have instead of a satisfying, plot resolving resolution to any of those fine series' - you can listen to an octogenarian harridan screaming 'Lawrence of my labia' while squirming in vomit-inducing pleasure. You can also marvel at the scene where it's difficult to tell the difference between a group of camels and the increasingly leather-skinned ladies or the frankly insulting fiddly-jig which plays every time a braless Irish nanny takes to the screen.
On the small screen, 'SATC' was acerbically sharp, envelope-pushing and BLISSFULLY SHORT! After two and a half hours of adventures in international ignorance and sexual encounters that threaten the gag reflex, you'll be hard pushed to remember what made these girls so fantastic the first time round.
0/5
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