On Desperation and Out of the Furnace

Out of the Furnace could be a visual accompaniment to the music of Bruce Springsteen whose music has its roots in the struggles of working class Americans. Set in mining community, evocative of The Deer Hunter (1978), Out of the Furnace explores the severe effects of a country in deep recession and replete with inequality.

Unemployment for the film’s protagonists is a constant threat and where these characters may have at one time been perceived as lazy, here they are hardworking, but desperate, reflecting the terrifying statistic that for every job place in America, there are four Americans vying for it. The platitude of dead or in jail couldn’t be more apt than here, but again the characters are sympathetic, with the exception of Woody Harrelson’s cartoonish villain. The brother’s whose story Out of the Furnace follows want to work, yet for one crime and eventually death beckons and for the other, with the closure of the mining plant, an uncertain future awaits, but jail is not a stretch. Yet these are good people and the film posits their fate is the responsibility of a poorly managed economy.

Neither does the war escape criticism as Casey Affleck’s returning soldier finds his future bleak outside of the army. As he stresses in one of the film’s most powerful scenes, he offered his life for his country and has now been casually cast aside. The soldier welcomes death as the only release from the horrors he has seen as a country unwilling to acknowledge his service.

In these ways, Out of the Furnace is symbolic of America, specifically the Bush administration, but sadly also the administration of change unfulfilled that Obama is becoming associated with. The film is powerfully acted and opens with a quiet assertiveness that disappears as the inevitable ending approaches. Still, this is an important, well made film with a message not to be ignored.

On a Long Journey with Inside Llewyn Davis

Ulysses, the 1922 James Joyce novel takes its title from the Roman name for Odysseus, the protagonist of Homer’s Odyssey who took ten years to return home. The idea of an almost endless journey for a frustrated ‘hero’ is not one uncommon to the Coen brothers. Many of their characters do not reach a traditional narrative ending and feel so ingrained in their landscape that they could have been born within it. Tommy Lee Jones’ Ed Tom Bell from No Country For Old Men (2007) being a prime example as the films cuts of mid story suggesting his is one that never ends. The Gopnik family from their underrated A Serious Man (2009) are perpetually dogged by bad luck and the film ends with a continuation of this. There 2000 O Brother Where Art Thou? is loosely based on the Odyssey, with the unlucky trio meeting many interesting characters on  their journey, including the sirens.

The Coens’ most recent and highly acclaimed film, Inside Llewyn Davis (with a cat named Ulysses) employs a cyclical narrative suggesting an unending struggle for the eponymous Llewyn. Llewyn’s journey throughout the film has a sense of timelessness; he even comments at one point that only a couple of days have passed, but it feels like much longer. This sums up the feeling that Inside Llewyn Davis communicates. Llewyn’s life is one so difficult that we would feel sorry for him if he weren’t so responsible for much of his difficulties. That he is a musician, trying to make what he sees as real music against a backdrop of commercialism places his journey again within a timeless setting.

That the Coen brothers show us full song performances goes against what we expect of traditional narrative cinema, but feels necessary for Inside Llewyn Davis as the lyrics provide narrative support and the slow, steady camera supports the sensation of Llewyn’s long journey. This is further brought to life by Bruno Delbonnel’s photography, which presents New York and more specifically Greenwich Village as being trapped in a shade of grey where there is no escape from the cold.

Inside Llewyn Davis is accomplished filmmaking from two men who are perhaps the most accomplished filmmakers working in America and continues a thematic narrative technique of characters, difficult and put-upon in their own unique ways, trying to move their way through life. 

On Retreading Old Ground with The Wolf of Wall Street

Martin Scorsese’s latest film, The Wolf of Wall Street has been accused of promoting and glamorising the unethical and inherently greedy behaviour of bankers and brokers. These criticisms are as wholly misplaced as those that may criticise Goodfellas (1990) for promoting gangsterism.

The Wolf of Wall Street’s tagline may be that greed is good, but Scorsese and DiCaprio are here targeting the unscrupulous behaviour of bankers and the top 1% of Americans that engender the inequality that is rife in the country. Scorsese is clearly sending the message that greed is bad and from the outset, with DiCaprio’s monologue to camera reminiscent of Ray Liotta’s in Goodfellas he is drawing direct parallels with his earlier masterpiece. The message is clear, these are the new gangsters.

A more legitimate, but still undeserving criticism would be that Scorsese is retreading old ground, specifically his Goodfellas ground and The Wolf of Wall Street certainly shows the highs of the banker lifestyle, before dropping the façade later in the film; these people (like Liotta and co.) are sociopaths. They may not be killing people, but they still belong in jail. Like Goodfellas, The Wolf of Wall Street is incredibly pertinent. The former was evocative of the organised crime, RICO arrests and political corruptions that America had experienced, while the latter explores the sense of anger that Americans are feeling towards the illegality of bankers, government and the richest 1%.

Again, like Goodfellas The Wolf of Wall Street is anchored by fantastic acting with a lead performance by Leonardo DiCaprio that is phenomenal. This is a role that is quite simply demented. His Jordan Belfort is a drug addict, alcoholic, sex addict and sociopathic adulterer. DiCaprio successfully communicates all of this behind the calm, charming gaze; he is comedy and insanity with a touch of aggression all while remaining seemingly cool. Although this should come as no surprise as his work in films such as The Aviator (2004) and Shutter Island (2010) are equally impressive. 

In short, Scorsese had made a Goodfellas for the recession age, but also a film that will stand the test of time. 

On 12 Years a Slave

Is this a film so important that everyone should see it? Does it stand alongside films about the Holocaust as an exploration as one of the greatest tragedies in humanity? Should we be ashamed that such horrendous acts are part of our recent history? Steve McQueen’s 12 Years a Slave certainly raises these questions, but refuses to lecture us, which is to his credit.

Coming on the back of the critically acclaimed Lincoln (2013) and Django Unchained (2013), 12 Years a Slave strives to present the brutality and for this reason could be the most honest and accurate representation of slavery. This is as oppose to Lincoln’s well crafted political wrangling and Django Unchained’s mostly misjudged cartoon presentation.

And brutality is present and for many it is this that stands out. The relentless cruelty is difficult. Brief moments of hope are cut short by further degrading, violent behaviour. McQueen’s direction of his actors and his art installation cinematography only serve to enhance the cruelty, yet at the same time are to be admired. An uncomfortable oxymoron. The acting is flawless, with Fassbender and Ejiofor drawing on all their talents to deliver powerful performances of suffering and hatred.

By drawing on motifs from his previous features, Hunger (2008) and Shame (2011), McQueen uses his long takes, beautifully framed, to force his audience to face the horror. Force them to ask the questions mentioned above, without dialogue, without preaching. As Ejiofor’s Northup hangs from a tree, barely able to stand, McQueen sits his camera still, simply watching as life in this lush South American landscape comes to life. The juxtaposition of beauty and horror symbolic of the films message. There is beauty in life and living it, yet horror in our own history at how we prevented people from experiencing it. 

12 Years a Slave should be seen and despite its viciousness it should be seen by most audiences. The issue is too important to solely be treated in an abstract manner. 

On Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues

How do you follow a film that became such a cult success that it remains widely quoted ten years after its release? The answer seems to be doing the same thing with the same people that made it so successful first time round. Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues is a natural continuation of Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004), with a similar set up and all the same actors. The sequel is as ridiculous as the first and like a favourite album, it doesn’t matter if the second track sounds like the first if you like the first so much. Co-writers Will Ferrell and Adam McKay know this and have made a sequel that is as absurd and funny as the first and importantly, in no way diminishes the original. 

On a Nod to Goodfellas with American Hustle

From the word go David O Russell’s American Hustle places itself in the mould of Scorsese’s Goodfellas (1990). In fact it could be said that American Hustle is parodic. From the multiple voice over’s, quick fire soundtrack, focus on low level urban crime and upbeat mood, American Hustle is, while being its own film, a nod to a classic of the crime genre.

American Hustle though is more of a comedy than Goodfellas ever was, despite the “I’m funny how”, routine. The characters are cartoonish and the narrative elaborate to the point of becoming farce. In fact, farce and absurdity are the sub genres of comedy most relevant here. A result of this is that American Hustle lacks the edge and danger of Goodfellas. But, even though the film is clearly set in the same mould, it is unfair to judge it against the close to perfect Goddfellas. American Hustle is very much a film in its own right. It is well acted and consistently watchable and as long as one remembers it belongs to the comedy genre (which is difficult for a film that has been so awarded as awarding bodies often ignore comedy), it is hard to really criticise, especially if the criticism is that it isn’t a film it was only nodding to, not trying to be.

There is the potential early on and one can be forgiven for predicting this route that the film will get darker and become a deeper metaphor on the American Dream. American Hustle does have the expected down on the other side of the criminals’ up, but it kind of all works out okay, which means it lacks any lasting or serious commentary. Not quite as stand out as Russell’s Three Kings (1999) or The Fighter (2010), which remain his best works, but still very entertaining. 

On The Top Ten of 2013

Of the 62 films seen this year and the shortlist of 21 that this list was whittled down from, below are the top 10 films seen in 2013. The number one is not surprising and while its characters may not be as developed as any of the other films, Gravity is a cinema experience unlike anything else this year. In fact there are two such films that have such a label, the other being Atlantic Ocean fishing documentary Leviathan, a film quite unlike any other of its genre in recent years.

What may be a surprise and what has been massively overlooked all year is Prisoners. Villeneuve impressed in 2010 with Incendies and Prisoners has the same level of shock and resonance. This a film as lasting as is perfectly crafted.

Filmmakers' films round out the rest of the list, by which is meant character driven and aesthetically impressive made by directors working in their most interesting phases. Both Payne’s Nebraska and Spielberg’s Lincoln also came very close. What is notable is the absence of any of the larger budget tent pole films as the repetitious formula is becoming tiresome, as are endless sequels and ‘linked’ films. Before Midnight, while being a sequel, rounds out a perfect trilogy. Yet the big budget World War Z impressed with its intense action sequences and ordinary man protagonist (its harder to relate to Norse gods and genetically altered people).

In short the list comprises filmmakers of more than six countries telling stories that have lasting impact. 

     1. Gravity (dir. Alfonso Cuaron)

2          2. Prisoners (dir. Denis Villeneuve)

3          3. Before Midnight (dir. Richard Linklater)

4          4. To the Wonder (dir. Terrence Malick)

5          5. Philomena (dir. Stephen Frears)

6          6. Blue is the Warmest Colour (dir. Abdellatif Kechiche)

7          7. Mud (dir. Jeff Nichols)

8          8. Frances Ha (dir. Noah Baumbach)

9          9. Leviathan (dir. Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel)

1         10. Trance (dir. Danny Boyle)