Posts tagged review
RAW: Film – Harry Brown – 4K
Apr 23rd
It’s so refreshing to see a veteran star embrace their age.
Michael Caine is admirable in the role of ex-serviceman Harry Brown, a senior citizen living in The Estate: a haven for thugs and drugs. After his wife passes away, and close friend Leonard Attwell is murdered, Harry takes matters into his own hands when he realises the police, including D.I. Alice Frampton (Emily Mortimer) and D.S. Terry Hicock (Charlie Creed-Miles), are unable to help…
Harry Brown is perceived to be a ‘vigilante pensioner’, however there is more to the character. Perhaps the catalyst for Harry’s actions is the death of his friend, but it is clear that he is acting in the best interests of the community living in The Estate.
Frampton: It’s not Northern Ireland Harry.
Harry Brown: No it’s not. Those people were fighting for something; for a cause. To them out there, this is just entertainment.
Fresh director Daniel Barber (The Tonto Woman) paints a realistic picture of The Estate, gritty and unsafe. Hand-held cameras are used to great effect at the start of the film, where instability and unpredictability are quickly established as the norm. Combined with a well-written screenplay by Gary Young, this film engages throughout.
Caine is supported by a great UK cast, including a meek Emily Mortimer, a paranoid David Bradley and an aggressive Ben Drew.
You’ll never underestimate an old man again…
Kryztoff Rating: 4K
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RAW: Pomona Road @ Space Theatre
Apr 23rd
This innovative production combines elements of contemporary dance, spoken word and visual projections to portray a family enduring tough times after surviving Ash Wednesday.
Adelaide choreographer Katrina Lazaroff (pictured below) has put together a truly touching show. This is actually the third installment of Pomona Road, finally uniting a family of five. They are established as warring siblings and loving parents through a varied soundtrack (voiceovers and songs) and choreography that connects with the average person. As the plot unfolds, unresolved tensions seem to rise to the surface, as do questions relating to child abuse and alcoholism.
Katrina Lazaroff
Martial arts have also influenced this piece – and are particularly useful when expressing frustration, anger and violence.
Nic Mollison also should be applauded for creating realistic projections of the forest, the bush and the city. The main set piece constructed by Richard Seidel is unexpectedly versatile.
The 60 minute production appeals to more than the typical fan of dance as a genre – this emerging style of ‘documentary dance’ engages anyone with an appreciation for the arts.
Pomona Road is only running until 24th April 2010 at Space Theatre – see it while you still can!
>>> For more on the Arts around Adelaide, check out Kryztoff: Edition 12.
RAW: Clash of the Titans 3D
Mar 31st
Clash of the cliches is more like it.
100 minutes of recycled highlights from the golden age of sword and sandal classics to Avatar, Alien and even Life of Brian.
Sam Worthington gets the gig as the main man but lacks the square jaw to pull it off. Not that he is helped by all that stilted lingo these films insist on and the special effects that while impressive at times were mostly just kind of limp. None of the characters resonated with Liam Neeson as Zeus (and dressed as Freddie Mercury) and Ralph Fiennes as his unhappy brother, Hades (dressed of course in black) going at it but who cared.
Giggling at it all often seemed the right response. The indeterminable trek across the wilderness (sometimes over the same ground twice) with the aid of scorpions would drug even the most Coke fired up teenage boy. His fighting comrades, who having just been hailed great men, put up unbelievably lame efforts against Medusa. (Nicholas Hoult, you are no Orlando Bloom which in itself is no great rap) and soon (but not soon enough) Worthington takes control and, guess what, wins the day.
Another in the running for worst film of the year. Expect to read a press release from Homer distancing himself from the content.
Kryztoff Rating: 1.5K