Boyhood

If there's one thing that can be said about Richard Linklater, it's that the man has patience. After all, he made a trilogy over the span of nearly twenty years, so what else could he be capable of?

The answer is in the form of his new film Boyhood. Shot over a period of twelve years, the film revolves around a young boy as he experiences life around him. And it's not an always happy one either.

It's certainly a bold move on Linklater's part to make Boyhood for that period of time. Sure, there have been films set during that time frame but filmed? It's not commonplace for films, that's for certain.

As is often the case with a Linklater film, the acting is excellent. Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke are very good in their roles but the main highlights are certainly Ellar Coltrane and Lorelei Linklater (the director's own daughter!). It's not very often you see consistent performances from young actors. (Usually such performances are...hollow.)

Boyhood is a one of a kind experience of a film. To repeat a cliche, it's something unlike any other film you've seen. Seriously, be sure to see it before the year's out.

My Rating: *****

A Walk Among the Tombstones

Boy, Liam Neeson's career has certainly gone down a different path in recent years, hasn't it? He went from starring in dramas like Schindler's List and Kinsey to starring in action movies like Taken and The Grey. Certainly not the usual roles for an Irish actor in his sixties.

And he continues this trend with his role in Scott Frank's A Walk Among the Tombstones. In many aspects, the film doesn't really provide anything new. That said, however, it does have a few perks to it.

You know how most films of this nature, the main culprits are either drug dealers or member of the mafia? Surprisingly, A Walk Among the Tombstones has the former as supporting characters. (And they're not the vicious kind either.) You don't see that very often, that's for sure.

But does that make A Walk Among the Tombstones good? Well, in two words, not really. It starts off relatively promising before slipping into B-movie material (particularly how women are treated an depicted throughout the film). It's not schlock but it's not too far off from it.

Anyway, A Walk Among the Tombstones is solid in some scenes and flimsy in others. Neeson is good as are Dan Stevens and Boyd Holbrook. But if you want to see a good thriller from Frank, your best bet is in the form of The Lookout.

My Rating: ***1/2

The Drop

Ah, the crime film. Ever since Francis Ford Coppola and Martin Scorsese got famous for making them during the seventies, there have been countless other directors trying to repeat the same success. Some have been lucky, some not so much.

So how has Michael R. Roskam fared with his new film The Drop? Well, on the one hand, the film does provide entertainment to those who watch it. But on the other hand, it doesn't really provide anything new.

That said, the people involved are rather impressive. It's written by Dennis Lehane (the film's based on a short story of Lehane's), and the film certainly has a similar mood to that of Mystic River and Gone Baby Gone. Among the actors involved are Tom Hardy, James Gandolfini (in perhaps fittingly his last film role), Noomi Rapace and Matthais Schoenaerts, all of whom do very well.

Back to the original point. The Drop for the most part follows the usual crime film conventions. Trying to stay out of the game, violent criminals, obvious fates for certain characters...these have been seen time and time again throughout the film industry. You'd think for the author of Mystic River and Gone Baby Gone Lehane would've been able to come up with something new.

Long story short, The Drop is good but not great. Sure, the acting and directing are good, but the plot could have been used a little work. Still, it's pretty solid enough to warrant a look.

My Rating: ****

Headhunters

One of the qualms I have with thrillers is that they're too clean cut most of the time. They often revolve around a government conspiracy that gets resolved within the span of two hours. I mean, there have been good ones throughout the years like The China Syndrome and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy but all of the other ones follow the same formula.

That's why Morten Tyldum's Headhunters is a very refreshing change of pace from some of the more recent thrillers. It doesn't revolve around a mass conspiracy, not in the slightest. Instead, the conspiracy hones in on one person: corporate recruiter/art thief Roger Brown (Aksel Hennie).

But who would put Roger through such an ordeal? The answer is in the form of Clas Greve (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), the executive of a company. The reason? Well, let's just say Roger didn't exactly make a wise decision in trying to rob Clas. (Certainly not the wisest thing to do if you just met the guy.)

What Tyldum does throughout Headhunters is he builds suspense at a steady pace. Usually films of this nature reveal too much or not enough in the short amount of time they have. But Tyldum uses the right amount of build-up for his film and boy, does it work.

Headhunters is one damn good film. Tyldum weaves a story that gets more and more fascinating as it unfolds. I wonder what Tyldum has in store for his next film...

My Rating: *****

A Most Wanted Man

It's surreal to watch an actor in a film released posthumously. Their presence throughout the film is felt but no longer in real life. It's a very bittersweet feeling.

Without a doubt, this is the case with Philip Seymour Hoffman in Anton Corbijn's A Most Wanted Man. As pretty much everyone can attest to, Hoffman was one of those actors that always made any film better. But since his passing this February, this sentiment is still very much shared.

A Most Wanted Man is similar to other adaptations of John le Carre's work like Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and The Constant Gardener. It builds with a slow burn, perhaps too slow a burn in some scenes. Not that it's a total flaw, mind you. It gives the film more time to focus on character interactions.

Corbijn (who also directed Control, one of my favorite films) directs the film with a keen eye. With cinematographer Benoit Delhomme, Corbijn makes every shot stand out with a certain color palette within each scene. (No surprise since Corbijn was a photographer before becoming a director.) It's a director's touch not often seen.

A Most Wanted Man is well done but rather bleak. (Perhaps because the shadow of Hoffman's passing looms over it?) Hoffman, as well as Rachel McAdams, Willem Dafoe and Robin Wright, give exceptional performances. Ignoring Mockingjay for a moment, the final shot of A Most Wanted Man could easily be the perfect ending for a career as prominent as Hoffman's.

My Rating: ****

The Trip

This is more of a small observation I've made in recent years, but the Brits really know how to make quality films and television. (Trust me, I've seen a lot amongst both fields.) Whether it be comedy or drama, those across the pond really know what they're doing.

The newest entry I've seen from the United Kingdom is Michael Winterbottom's The Trip. On paper, it doesn't sound like your average comedy. But it's actually quite clever as you watch it.

The film stars comedians Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon, both of whom I'm rather familiar with. (Coogan from films like 24 Hour Party People and Philomena; Brydon from panel shows like Would I Lie to You? and QI.) Now both men by themselves are funny. Together: priceless.

The thing about most comedies it that they're usually a mix of scripted material and improv. In the case of The Trip, it's mostly improv. (Then again, it is a film starring Coogan and Brydon as exaggerated versions of themselves.) The amount of self-deprecation throughout the film isn't something usually seen in comedies but it is British humor we're talking about, so that should come as no surprise.

The Trip is a rather charming film. (In the British sense, mind you.) Admittedly, the ending sort of altered the mood of the film (and it might have broken my heart a little) but that doesn't make the film any less solid. After all, a good comedy does one good.

My Rating: ****

Nine Lives

Do you know what one of the problems in Hollywood is? Not enough well-written roles for women. Sure, there are some on television within such shows as Mad Men and Masters of Sex, but it's lacking when it comes to film. It only takes the right person to create an at least decent role for an actress.

Rodrigo Garcia is thankfully one such person. The proof is Nine Lives. A series of, well, nine vignettes, the film focuses on women as their lives take an unexpected turn. Some good, some bad, some life-altering.

The vignettes are similar to the likes of a Robert Altman film in the sense of quality performances from a wide range of actors. But unlike Altman's film, Garcia has his vignettes shot in one continuous take courtesy of cinematographer Xavier Perez Grobet. It's something not normally seen in the average film, but it's certainly daring.

Speaking of the actors, Garcia certainly got an enviable roster of actors for his film. (I mean, just look at the names on the poster.) In their limited screentimes, they all provide top notch performances. Some are better than others, granted, but it's clear that some of the actors are giving career best work.

Yes, some of the vignettes aren't as great as the others, but that doesn't lessen Nine Lives' value. (My personal favorite was "Lorna" with "Diana" and "Sonia" as close seconds.) To be honest, I don't understand why more people haven't seen it. After all, it's a testament of writing and acting at its finest.

My Rating: ****

The Hunt

Be careful of what you hear. The power of one's words can easily get blown out of proportion. They can also destroy one's reputation. (Atonement provides one such example.)

Thomas Vinterberg's The Hunt is another stellar example. But rather than revolving around what was said, the film focuses one the reactions to what was said. And boy, it ain't pretty.

The film focuses on Lucas (Mads Mikkelsen), a man who recently got his life back in order. But a nasty rumor starts to circulate in his small town, and it's possible that Lucas' reputation could get ruined.

It's thanks to Vinterberg's direction and Mikkelsen's performance that make The Hunt work. You expect at some point for Lucas to slowly crack under pressure but throughout the film, he remains resilient until it's finally too much. Again, Vinterberg's direction and Mikkelsen's performance, both unflinching, are what make the film work.

By many means, The Hunt is a quiet film but it doesn't stay that way the whole time. As well as being incredibly dark (even considering its subject matter), the film also convinced me that the human race is a vicious one. We just need that one provocation, and only God knows what'll happen next...

My Rating: *****

Hard Candy

The opening scene of David Slade's Hard Candy focuses on a supposedly innocent online chat. The Hayley (Ellen Page) and Jeff (Patrick Wilson) meet in person. The noticeable age difference aside, they get along very well...then things start to change.

Those are the best kind of films, aren't they? The ones that start off normal and slowly become something more twisted. Boy, does Slade know how to weave such a tale. (It's almost a shame that he would do a Twilight movie a few years later.)

It's also a strong testament when a film relies only on two actors to carry the story. (Both relative unknowns at the time too!) Most films of this nature usually require actors who are well-established throughout Hollywood. But Slade enlists the likes of Page and Wilson (both of whom not too far off from their big breaks) and damn, does it work.

Here's the interesting thing about Hayley's actions: we don't know why she's doing what she's doing. She doesn't give any hints that something of this nature had happened to her personally. Is Hayley retaliating or is she simply a devil with the face of an angel? Forget Juno; this is the role that should have gotten Page a nomination.

Although it loses steam in parts, Hard Candy is a thoroughly effective film. Thanks to the work from Page and Wilson (both of whom need to be in more stuff), the film proves that looks can be very deceiving. (It's true, you know.)

My Rating: ****

Calvary

In the opening scene of John Michael McDonagh's Calvary, the fate of Father James (Brendan Gleeson) is sealed by an unseen presence. In that scene, we witness Gleeson's face as Father James tries to process what he's been told. It's a lingering long take that resonates for the rest of the film.

But what does McDonagh's film revolve around afterwards? Simply put, it focuses on Father James in the days after his fate becomes sealed and the various townsfolk he encounters. To anyone else, no one would think too much about menial moments like those. But to Father James, with his days numbered, they take on a new meaning.

With Calvary, McDonagh does an inversion from his last film The Guard. Rather than having a morally corrupt lead around good people, Calvary features a good lead around morally corrupt people. But rather than being a dark comedy like The Guard, Calvary opts for a more serious and somber tone.

McDonagh also got a rather impressive (and very Irish) cast. As well as Gleeson, the cast features the likes of Kelly Reilly, Aidan Gillen, Chris O'Dowd and Dylan Moran. (There's also Domhall Gleeson as an one-scene wonder.) They're all great but this easily Gleeson's show. Without a doubt, this is his best work as an actor.

Calvary is a quiet by many means but it also provides the impact when it's required. Thanks to McDonagh's direction and Gleeson's performance, the film shows how darkness lingers where you least expect it.

My Rating: ****