Christopher Nolan is undeniably one of the most ambitious, forward thinking filmmakers working in the industry today. Known for writing and directing mind-bending films such as Inception and Memento, his thought-provoking style pushes the boundaries of cinema, challenging audiences to unravel his narratives. His latest picture is sci-fi epic ‘Interstellar’ and it is perhaps his most daring yet. Set on a decaying planet Earth running low on natural resources, Matthew McConaughey takes the leading role as former NASA pilot Cooper and is tasked with the almighty responsibility of finding a new home planet for the human race. After much deliberation with his daughter Murphy (Mackenzie Foy) and persuasion from Professor Brand (Michael Caine), he leaves his family behind for the greater good, taking off with biologist Amelia (Anne Hathaway) for a journey through space and time.
In a year that has pushed the envelope in terms of experimental filmmaking, is there still a demand for simplistic cinema? Or is it in fact more ambitious to do the stripped-back style well, with solid acting and an intelligent script, than convolute your story with gimmicks to stand out from the crowd? Belgian director Michaël R. Roskam brings together an excellent cast for neo-noir drama ‘The Drop’, which harks back to the classic gangster genre movies where nobody can be trusted and danger lurks around every corner. Tom Hardy stars as soft-spoken and unassuming bartender Bob Saginowski who looks after a drinking den alongside his Cousin Marv (James Gandolfini), which is regularly used as a ‘drop’ for the local lowlifes to launder their illegally gotten gains. When a robbery takes place after hours, Bob and Marv find themselves in a precarious predicament, forced to face the wrath of the mob.
Brooklyn’s grimy underworld provides the backdrop for Dennis Lehane’s tightly woven script to unfold. Having previously worked on The Wire as well as collaborating with legendary crime film director Scorsese, his influences are clear as they bleed into the flawed but fascinating characters. Very much character driven rather than narrative driven, the study of the morals and masculinity of the protagonists is always interesting and an appealing subplot plays out naturally about the responsibilities involved in taking on a pit bull pup. While events never really veer too far out of the ordinary story-wise, Roskam puts on a masterclass in tension building, heightening to a satisfying final third.
It is of course terribly sad that this film will mostly be remembered for featuring James Gandolfini’s final screen performance, but it is testament to how phenomenally gifted he was as an actor. Widely known for his long-running portrayal of New Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano, he was an expert in complex multi-faceted drama and playing cowardly Cousin Marv serves as a fitting swansong. Not to be outdone though is Tom Hardy, who matches Gandolfini blow for blow in a battle of acting prowess and again proves himself as one of the best of his generation. He gives a controlled and more subtle turn than we are used to seeing from him, nailing the accent and showing that sometimes less is more.
‘The Drop’ is an effective throwback genre picture, and what it lacks in narrative imagination, it makes up for with the powerful screen presence of the leads. The term ‘actor’s movie’ has never felt more apt. Roskam and screenwriter Lehane present a bleak Brooklyn exterior, an unappealing interpretation of the big apple which hides a black and bloody core of corruption. In this environment, it is equally dangerous whether you’re propping up the bar or serving beers with Bob and Marv from behind it, but where Hardy and Gandolfini are concerned, consider the metaphorical acting bar raised.
In his feature length debut, Yann Demange’s action thriller takes us to the height of the Troubles in Belfast where political conflict lasted for over a quarter of a century. We witness the hostilities through the fearful eyes of a young British soldier called Gary Hook (Jack O’Connell) whose squad is caught in the middle of a riot, and who is accidentally left behind by his unit after events go terribly awry. As he desperately tries to get back to his barracks and fights for survival, he becomes embroiled in a local war of corruption and betrayal. This is a brutally realistic depiction of terror, enhanced by yet another stunning performance from one of Britain’s best.
There is a patient build-up as we’re first introduced to Private Gary Hook, and we get vital glimpses of his youthful innocence before he is thrust into the face of danger. The grainy cinematography as well as the shaky camera techniques assist in creating a pragmatically dangerous environment. An excellent chase sequence had me gripped as the protagonist is hunted down by a ruthless gang of nationalists. Tension drops slightly as Hook meets a young impressionable protestant who seems born to hate the ‘fenian bastards’ as he so eloquently, and continuously puts it. Their brief encounter offers the only glimmer of humour as the youngster struts the dishevelled streets like a mafia boss, but the friendship is brought to an abrupt, shocking climax which highlights the atmosphere of the film and illustrates how treacherous the situation was in Northern Ireland at that time.
In a role much more subtle and understated than we are used to, Jack O’Connell is excellent. With very little dialogue, his performance relies on his range of expression as well as his general screen presence. Earlier this year, we saw him in Starred Up as a disturbed prisoner, visceral and violent. Here, he is vulnerable, and lost in a antagonistic environment that he knows little about. Support comes in force from Paul Anderson and Sean Harris as crooked figures of authority. Harris’ squirrel faced villain is chilling, and with trouble around every corner, so-called factions are paper thin as every character seems willing to stab their allies in the back. The final third plays out a little predictably, though not without moments on extreme intensity as all sides close in on Hook and each other.
The focus of the thriller as a whole leans less on being a story of the Troubles as such, and more a survival movie as the lead is attacked from all angles throughout. It marks an impressive foray into cinema for the director Demange, who along with writer Gregory Burke and composer David Holmes, captures the threatening mood brilliantly. The main strength of the piece is the central turn from O’Connell. We’ll see him on the big screen again soon, this time as an American soldier in Angelina Jolie’s WWII directorial debut Unbroken, which demonstrates the impact he is having within the industry. Until then, we can celebrate the year he has in British film – the rising star has reached new heights.
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Joseph Mallord William Turner was a complicated man, revered for his pioneering painting style, but his reputation tainted by his life away from the easel. In typically fluid fashion, veteran British filmmaker Mike Leigh writes and directs a biopic of the artist, which looks at the latter stages of Turner’s life. The great Timothy Spall stars in the eponymous role, and the narrative follows how he balanced his passion for his art with his personal demons. Both Leigh and his regular cinematographer Dick Pope are long-time fans of J.M.W. Turner and this comes across strongly on-screen as the director’s style departs from the zany and improvisational and is executed with great care and precision.
Inspired by his own film Beautiful Young Minds, British filmmaker Morgan Matthews directs ‘X+Y’, a story of a young boy with autism who has a gift for mathematics. The cast includes Asa Butterfield, Rafe Spall, Eddie Marsan and Sally Hawkins. It screened at Glasgow Film Festival and I was fortunate enough to speak to Morgan Matthews about the project…
Coming from a career in documentary filmmaking, why was this the right time for your first foray into feature fiction?
I’ve made a lot of documentaries and have done so in differing styles but at the same time felt that I was making them in quite a similar way. I want to be creatively challenged every time I make a film and try all the different forms of storytelling, and whether it’s documentary or fiction you’re still telling a story. In some ways there are a lot of similarities.
‘If it bleeds, it leads’ is the heartless crime journalism motto in noir thriller, ‘Nightcrawler’ written and directed by first-timer Dan Gilroy. The film is centred wholly around entrepreneurial nutcase Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllenhaal) who roams the neon lit streets of Los Angeles in search of a money-making scheme. When he witnesses a terrible highway accident and a man capturing the events on camera, he sees an opportunity to capitalise on, deciding to have a go himself, selling his grisly footage to the highest bidding news station. This dark slice of cinema is fascinating throughout, exploring the moral philosophies of freelance reporting through the eyes of and focussed through the lens of a driven, but extremely intelligent lunatic, who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.
The narrative ticks along at an alarming pace as Bloom quickly builds his reputation, hiring Rick as his hard-working assistant and forming a working relationship with Nina, a news channel director. Lou continuously pushes his assets to the absolute limits, always wanting more sales, more success and consequently more money. The gloomy style of the cinematography along with an unsettling score combine to create a creepy cloud that descends on LA after dark and is the suitable environment for the complex protagonist to go about his business. By day, he is calculating and clever, delivering motivational nuggets to justify his motives. When pestering a potential employer, he argues that ‘if you want to win the lottery, you have to make the money to buy a ticket’. By night, he is equally direct and eloquent in his methods of madness but possesses a cruel, dangerous streak.
Jake Gyllenhaal, who also produced the project, describes his latest character as a human interpretation of a coyote, lurking in the shadows of the metropolis. He lost twenty pounds in weight for the role and his gaunt look and inhumane glare give Lou Bloom a chilling exterior to match the mercilessness behind the glazy eyes. Aspects of other cinematic anti-heroes can be pulled from the intricacies of Lou Bloom; he has the social awkwardness of Travis Bickle and the driving prowess of Gosling’s unnamed stunt driver, as well as the psychotic tendencies of Patrick Bateman. These combined attributes though make Bloom memorable in his own right, and Gyllenhaal is scarily good in his portrayal. Excellent support comes from British star Riz Ahmed as Bloom’s loyal aide who goes against his ethical scruples in his desperation for steady employment.
‘Nightcrawler’ continues an interesting trend of major acting talent turning to darker, indie material in order to get more in-depth satisfying roles, though Gyllenhaal now finds himself on the wrong side of the moral compass, following his previous authoritative parts. Following Bloom from one crime scene to the next, we as an audience become almost complicit in his wicked ways, laughing at his words of warped wisdom and absorbed in his murky profession. While discussing his line of work with a police officer, he gleefully states ‘I like to think that if you see me, you’re having the worst day of your life’. I would never want to come across his kind face to face but on-screen, his company is well worth your time.
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