Some minor spoilers. Be warned.
Desmond Doss was a young man from Virginia who wanted to play his part in World War II. He was also a Seventh Day Adventist and a pacifist who would not use violence against another man. His fight to be a part of the US army forms the basis of this new film directed by Mel Gibson. He eventually makes it into the army as a medic and shows his true colours when he finds himself in the midst of horrific conflict in the Pacific theatre of 1945.
The first half of the film is about Doss (ably played by Andrew Garfield) in boot camp trying to stay true to his convictions while dealing with ridicule and harassment from his fellow trainees & punishment from his superiors. Cliche abounds here ie beatings, slaggings, forced marches etc but we get to know more about Doss and the supporting soldiers. What also pleased me was that the Drill Sergeant ( Vince Vaughn who i usually cant hack at all, too many awful comedies lately) isn't the one note anger machine we usually see in war films. I mean, he is shouty but we can get the sense that Doss interests him and i found that refreshing.
The meat of the film and i mean that both figuratively and literally is in the second half of the film which takes place during the Battle of Okinawa on the eponymous ridge of the title. Director Mel Gibson comes into his own here. We've seen from his past films that he is a master of directing violent action sequences and his work here is second to none. This is war depicted as it should be. Blood and guts. Disgusting. An abbatoir. Hell. Not since the start of Saving Private Ryan has warfare been depicted so vividly.
The acting is mostly superb. Andrew Garfield does remind me of a lost puppy in places but he carries the film with aplomb. Hugo Weaving is magnificent in a small role as Doss's father who plays a pivotal role in getting Doss into combat. Vince Vaughn shows that he's hopefully over his True Detective mis-step by taking what is usually a one note role and making something more of it. Teresa Palmer makes the most of a very minor role as the only woman of note in the film. This was never going to be a film that would pass the Bechdel test but i would have liked to have seen more of her.
The directing of the film is excellent, especially in the 2nd half of the film. Even in the melee of battle we can easily make out what is happening, who is who and where they are. Plenty of modern day directors make an absolute balls of action scenes by overdoing the shaky cam and thinking this will add excitement. It doesn't. Mel Gibson, due to events in the recent past has quite rightly been a pariah in Hollywood. Hopefully he has learned his lessons, will shut up in future, keep his head down and stick to director duties.
All in all i thought this was a very good film. It's an amazing story that would seem far-fetched if it was fiction. Some aspects annoyed me, like the overblown treatment of Doss later in the film, one very very gung-ho sequence on the battlefield ( you'll know it, it's like GI Joe and sticks out like a sore thumb ) and the casting of Sam Worthington as the Captain. The man cannot act at all! But that said the good far outweighs the bad.
A very solid night out at the cinema.
Sat 28/1 BBC2 @22.20
The Sapphires. A thoroughly entertaining film about a band of 4 Aboriginal women who find themselves playing in Vietnam to entertain American soldiers during the war in the 60's. Warm, uplifting stuff that gives some insight into a culture we rarely see in films with great performances from Amanda Tapsell and Chris O'Dowd who is hilarious as their manager.
Sat/Sun 28/1 RTE 1 @midnight
Raging Bull. Martin Scorsese's magnificent biopic of Jake LaMotta, a boxer who let himself be controlled by his demons. It's far from a fun watch but jaysus it's a compulsive one. Sit back and enjoy the amazing performances from Robert De Niro, Cathy Moriarty and Joe Pesci & beautiful black and white photography and know you are watching one of the best films of all time.
Mon 30/1 TG4 @21.30
Side Effects. An anti depressive drug taken by a young woman has unexpected and far reaching side effects. To say any more would spoil the twists and turns of this cracking little thriller from Steven Soderbergh. There's more than a slight whiff of Hitchcock from the story but that aint a bad thing at all. Rooney Mara & Catherine Zeta Jones are great in this.
Tues 31/1 Film4 @23.05
The Warriors. A street gang in 1970s New York tries to stay alive over the course of a night after being wrongly accused of murder and they find every other gang in the city is out for their necks. A highly entertaining and imaginative action film filled with wild characters and cracking set pieces and topped off with a super soundtrack.
Wed 1/2 TCM @23.10
Wyatt Earp. Kevin Costner's star studded and epic retelling of the story of the mythical lawman. A compelling and beautiful film about the life of Wyatt Earp from his teenage years up until his life as a lawman in Tombstone and the famous events that unfolded there. Costner as always is great as Earp but Dennis Quaid as Doc Holliday owns the film. 3 hrs of perfect old style entertainment.
Thurs 2/2 ITV4 @23.10
30 Days Of Night. A full blooded horror set in the north of Alaska where it stays dark for months on end. The perfect feeding ground for vampires. And these are not the nice twinkly vampires of Twilight. A properly scary, fast moving and vicious film with solid lead turns from Josh Hartnett and Melissa George. If you are turned off by the sight of blood I'd advise you to give this on a miss!
Fri 3/2 Film 4 @18.15
Mud. A lovely little coming of age tale about two young chaps in rural America who wind up involved with an on the run fugitive called Mud. Its a little bit too long but the superb and naturalistic feeling acting and fantastic scenery with keep you hooked. Matthew McConnaughey is top notch in the title role and the film is directed by Jeff Nichols who also did 'Loving' which has earned Limerick's Ruth Negga an Oscar nomination.
Sat 21st BBC2 @22.30
Looper. In the future unwanted people are sent back in time to be killed by hitmen. Things go arseways when a hitman is faced with an older version of himself who has been sent back in time to be disposed of. (Trust me, its not as confusing as it seems) Bruce Willis & Joseph Gordon Levitt headline this excellent sci-fi action film. An intelligent, imaginative, funny, bloody and thoroughly exciting film, this was my fave film of 2012
Sat 21st Film4 @23.20
Dressed To Kill. Brian De Palma's cinematic love letter to Alfred Hitchcock. A young woman witnesses a murder and becomes the murderers next target. Thats a simplistic description of a the plot tbh. This is a bizarre, tense and unsettling film and one that will offend some viewers tbh. For that reason alone i think it's worth a watch. Nancy Allen & Michael Caine are both great in this.
Sun 22nd TV3 @21.00
The River Wild. Meryl Streep is brilliant as always in this tense, action packed and sadly largely forgotten little thriller about a family on a rafting holiday who run into a couple of dodgy types. Streep & Kevin Bacon as the big bad are on great form, there's some superb action & beautiful scenery and .......and what else do you need?
Mon 23rd TG4 @21.30
A Most Wanted Man. A tortured muslim refugee turns up in Hamburg and immediately peaked the interest of german security forces. Is he all that he seems? An intriguing and suspenseful little thriller that will remind you on the tv show 'Homeland' and emboldened by yet another cracking performance from the sadly departed Philip Seymour Hoffman.
Wed 25th Film4 @23.15
Apocalypto. Set in the time of the Mayans a young man is captured by a rival tribe and fights for his and his wife's life. A dizzyingly exciting and fast moving film. For my money one of the best action films of the century. Yes, director Mel Gibson is a twat but there is no denying that this is a seriously well made film. Word of warning though, it is definitely not for the squeamish.
Thurs 26th ITV 4 23.40
The Bank Job. Statham. In a polo neck. In the 60's. Called Terry Leather. Bank Robberies. Cups of tea. Royal porn. Toyah from Coronation Street. More cups of tea. Ham radio. A fun and tense thriller about a bank robbery in swinging 60's London. A different type of Jason Statham film but well worth a watch. Did i mention he's called Terry Leather. Best name ever.
Fri 27th TG4 @21.20
A Fistful Of Dynamite. An IRA member is recruited by a Mexican bandito to rob a bank but he has other ideas. Rod Steiger and James Coburn are excellent in this at times funny and gorgeous looking western from the master, Sergio Leone. Its a lesser film than his famous trilogy and Once Upon A Time In The West but its still really worth a watch. A couple of scenes from this were filmed in Toner's on Baggot Street in Dublin. See if you spot them.
Sat 14th Film4 @23.15
Blue Ruin. A man returns to where he grew up for a spot of revenge. That's all you need to know. A gripping little lo-fi thriller full of tension, nasty violence and super acting from a cast of faces you won't recognise at all. The same director made last year's excellent Green Room. I expect his next film will be called Red House or something!
Sun 15 RTE 1 @00.05
Gangster Squad. I'm in the minority here it seems but I thoroughly enjoyed this brutal, pulpy and entertaining story of cops vs gangsters set in post war Los Angeles. John O'Mara ( My Da's name, I got a great kick out of this) played by Josh Brolin, in full on tough guy mode, builds a team of hardy cops to take down arch criminal Mickey Cohen. Bullets, blood and hard boiled dialogue fly across the screen. A fun way to pass 2 hours.
Sun 15th RTE 2 @14.25
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. Michael Caine is at his hilariously slimy best in this genuinely funny comedy about con artists on the French riviera. Steve Martin is his rival/partner who teams up with him to trick a rich heiress played by Glenne Headly. Things do not go to plan. A perfect Sunday afternoon movie.
Mon 16th TCM @23.00
Mad Max 2. Action film nirvana. In an apocalyptic future water and petrol are precious commodities and people are willing to kill and die for them. A drifter helps defend the innocent from a pack of lunatics. A brilliantly entertaining and inventive movie with some of THE best stunts ever. Mel Gibson barely talks but carries the story with aplomb.
Tues 17th Film4 @12.50
My Darling Clementine. I'm a sucker for the old westerns and this 1946 John Ford directed version of the story of Wyatt Earp & Doc Holliday & the OK Corral shoot out is a fave. It's in black and white, it's 71 years old but seems fresh as a daisy and moves like a freight train. Henry Fonda's performance as Earp is still the best, slow, deliberate and the exact opposite of Victor Mature's fun performance of Doc Holliday. I love this film.
Wed 18th More 4 @11.00
The Flight Of The Phoenix. The original and best version of the tale of a group of survivors of a plane crash in the Sahara and their plans to escape their predicament. A tense, sweaty, compelling and absorbing film with a super cast; James Stewart, Dicky Attenborough and well known tough guys like Ernest Borgnine & George Kennedy. It's 2.5 hrs long but it flies by. Unlike the plane! Sorry.
Fri 20th RTE 1 @23.55
Postcards From The Edge. Meryl Streep is on top form as a film star trying to rebuild both her career and her relationship with her mother after a cocaine overdose nearly kills her. The late great Carrie Fisher wrote this funny and moving film from her own novel which was kinda sorta based on her own life. Great supporting cast too including Shirley Maclaine, Gene Hackman & Richard Dreyfuss.
7/1 TG4 @22.05
Goodfellas. Probably my favourite film of all time. Martin Scorsese's story of a man's involvement with the New York mafia over 30 years. Cinema at its finest, exhilarating, hilarious, brutal and magnificent. You'll laugh one minute and cover your face in horror the next. Ray Liotta, Robert De Niro and Lorraine Bracco are amazing in this but it's Joe Pesci's film. He owns it. I'm so jealous if you've never seen this. You are in for such a treat.
8/1 TG4 @12.55
A Streetcar Named Desire. The story of an upper class southern woman who leaves all the trappings of wealth behind to move to New Orleans. This is a troubling, intense, claustrophobic film and a classic in every sense of the word with a cast to die for. It introduced the world to Marlon Brando as Stanley but the film belongs to Vivien Leigh as Blanche Dubois. Lunchtime is a strange time to be showing this.
9/1 TG4 @21.30
Mr Turner. You can't go wrong with a Mike Leigh film. And his biopic of the painter JMW Turner is a cracker. It details his work and loves over the course of the last 25 years of his life.Timothy Spall is superb as the titular character. Spall is always superb. 90 minutes of him reading The Limerick Leader would be worth a watch.
10/1 Film4 @14.55
The Blue Dahlia. A gripping bit of film noir from the pen of the master himself, Raymond Chandler. A pilot, just back from war and looking for a bit of peace finds himself accused of murdering his wife who he found out was having an affair. It's a bleak film though not as gritty and dark as the best of the genre but well worth a watch to see Alan Ladd & the beautiful Veronica Lake in action.
11/1 More4 @11.15
Stalag 17. American P.O.W.'s in a german war camp keep having their escape plans scuppered and one man finds himself being blamed for the leak. Sounds like an odd proposition for a comedy drama but director Billy Wilder makes it work. A very entertaining film filled with darkish laughs and a top notch performance from William Holden as the accused man holds it all together perfectly.
12/1 TCM 19.00
The Maltese Falcon. One of the all time great crime films. A twisty turny tale of a detective searching for a priceless statue. Full of mystery, intrigue, great hard boiled dialogue and done to perfection by a great cast including Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Walter Huston & especially Peter Lorre. Yes its dated but that's all part of the fun of films like this. It's a bit of cinematic history and deserves to be watched.
13/1 Film4 @15.50
Ice Cold In Alex. A very entertaining story of a British medical unit trying to get to Alexandria during WW2 with only a massive desert blocking their way. Its a lovely looking film packed with memorable characters and funny/tense moments. John Mills leads a cast of recognisable English actors and the finale will leave you dying for a tall cold pint of lager. Record this for a rainy sunday afternoon.
