Frances Ha Review

Frances Ha Review

 

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Noah Baumbach is back with his follow up to 2010's Greenberg with Frances Ha, a remarkable comedy revolving around the life of a discontented aspiring dancer.

 

The film follows many of the same thematic traits as Noah's previous films; the life of a New Yorker, the problems one faces when trying to achieve their dreams and the awkwardness of real life relationships. This time the story is focused on 27 year old Frances, a woman trying to achieve her dreams of being a dancer in New York City. Baumbach tackles the subject in a lighthearted and whimsical manner, clearly taking inspiration from a range of different filmmakers and eras. As the narrative progresses and Frances faces problem after amusing problem, it was clear that Baumbach has been influenced by the mumblecore movement and Lena Dunham's work. The sheer awkwardness of the main character, and her seemingly fearless and blunt 'say it how it is' attitude reminded me of Dunham's Girls and Tiny Furniture, both of which are favourites of mine. It's no surprise then that I found Frances to be endearing and lovable, although many people will be turned off by her attitude and loathe her immature and care free spirit. In terms of narrative, the film plays it safe, opting for a familiar take on the New York story. The witty script and visual beauty more than make up for the slightly weak narrative, and for me Frances' dialogue alone is worth the admission fee.

 

Technically the film is a marvel, utilising black and white to give the film a Godard new wave look, it bursts with life and beauty. The hipster vibe works incredibly well in Frances Ha, the stark cinematography clashes with the realist deadpan humour, creating a mish mash of realist and modernist styles working well within the frame. The soundtrack is again fantastic, with the rock sounds of T-Rex and Bowie coupled with the cheesy funk of Hot Chocolate once again clashing in a way that feels right for the film. Performance wise, the cast are all wonderful, with the obvious standout being Greta Gerwig as Frances. The lead performance is what makes the film, in the same way that Dunham carries her own work, the same can be said for Gerwig, appearing to be improvising her lines on the spot mumblecore style. Gerwig's standout scene has to be the moment she begins an impromptu dance through the streets of New York with a roaring Bowie song playing in the background, surely the most potentially iconic scene from the film. Mickey Summer as France's best friend Sophie plays a great part too, with the chemistry between them making it appear as though the two have known each other for years.

 

Frances Ha shines above this summer's films as a beacon of hope, a sign that there are still talented and original works being created among the same old genre films. The film is worth seeing for Greta's performance alone, a hilariously awkward, yet grounded and real role that you will either love or hate. Frances Ha is a film that anyone with a taste for deadpan and witty humour or mumblecore should see, a sublime comedy and one of the best films of the year.

 

9/10



Citadel Review

Citadel Review

 

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Ciaran Foy's directorial debut is ultimately an underwhelming genre film, which attempts to raise some important questions, but merely provides a muddled plot of uneven political stance.

 

The plot of Citadel is dark, bleak and depressing. Young father Tommy sees his pregnant girlfriend attacked by a gang of hooded kids, she then ends up in a coma leaving Tommy to look after their child as he copes with his increased agoraphobia and anxiety. Tommy is a painfully weak character, to the point where it becomes irritating, his fear of the outside world appears to represent feelings of today's parents, who obsess over the safety of their offspring in this supposedly terrifying world of gangs and crime. The plot then shifts up a gear as Tommy's house is broken into by the same hooded figures that attacked his girlfriend, as he seeks help of the local priest he is told that these figures are not human but demons. It is at this point where one begins to question the motives behind this piece, is Foy deliberately making out that anyone wearing a hoody is instantly a potential killer, or is he passing comment on the demonisation of hooded youth, brought to life literally through the demons in the film. It's a muddled plot, one which is both laughably silly and frighteningly current.

 

Aside from the plot, the film is a mood piece, a film which brings forth feelings of tension, unnerve and depression. Most of this is done through the visuals, which are grimy and nightmarish, perhaps displaying a literal view of how we imagine the housing estates pictured in the film. Being a horror film, the entire picture feels like Tommy's nightmare, utilising loud distortion noises coupled with unnerving shots of hooded figures poised to attack or standing in doorways to make the film seem like a twisted reality. Holding all of these elements together is Aneurin Barnard's performance, a brilliant representation of the fear and paranoia supposedly taking place within urban estates today.

 

Ultimately, the film feels confused, it seems Foy can't make up his mind whether to demonise or comment on the demonisation of hooded youth, which makes the film frustrating to watch. As a horror film, it succeeds to an extent, but provides nothing more than a standard genre film would, albeit with noticeable use of tension building and mood, something which is missing from many contemporary horror films. It is perhaps too low budget and artsy for blockbuster horror fans, yet is too cliche and predictable for the arthouse crowd. Citadel is mediocre at best, an attempt to create something more than a standard horror affair, which fails due to its muddled plot and politics, leaving nothing more than an average picture.

 

6/10

Monsters University Review

Monsters University Review

 

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This summer pixar returned to the beloved fantasy universe of Monsters Inc, a realm populated by the bizarre yet lovable race of monsters we all know and adore. In doing so, they have created a delightful animation feature, which delivers on big laughs over sentiment and morals.

 

The film is a prequel to the original Monsters Inc, and focuses on the two main characters, Sully and Mike, as they progress through university in order to become a 'Scarer'. There is an instant sense of warmth and charm as the film opens with yet another stylised hand drawn title sequence, a sort of welcome home. From here we see the beginning of Mike's life as a student, already brimming with his dorky but determined charm. His dream is to become a scarer, a future we witnessed during the first film. He finds a competitor in the selfish jock Sully, who by the end becomes the soft and fuzzy goofball we all know him as. While the plot may not be anything new, it does satisfy, introducing some absolutely sensational new characters along the way including the rainbow loving, glitter obsessed Art, who provides a large majority of the laughs during the film. The thing that always elevates Pixar animations above the rest is focus on character and heart over action sequences or cliched stereotypes, and this aspect shines during Monsters University, which is essentially all about the characters.

 

Monsters University is undeniably funny, utilising both slapstick for the kids as well as dialogue gag's that only adults will appreciate, it covers all grounds. Being an avid party pooper, humour is something that I usually don't appreciate, however this left me crying and unable to breath at certain points, which demonstrates either the film is very funny or I have  bad taste in humour. As well as being hilarious and providing a solid plot, the film looks stunning, with Pixar's signature attention to detail providing some beautiful texture work, with fur being a rendered particularly realistically. The film's colourful and vibrant visuals are easy on the eye, and with the addition of 3D fully immerse you within the fantasy world, making it harder to face reality after the credits roll.

Speaking of reality, this is without question a film to watch in a laid back state of mind, over analysing will do you no favours here. Monsters University will entertain every demographic, with something for each generation to enjoy regardless of taste in film. As a popcorn movie, University succeeds brilliantly, as a savour to the animation industry, perhaps not. It's clear that Pixar were not aiming to reinvent the wheel, but simply ride it again, and do what they do best, provide animation that is heartfelt, funny, immersive and ultimately entertaining.

8/10



The Bling Ring Review

The Bling Ring Review

 

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Sofia Coppola's Bling Ring is a triumph in social commentary, a film bursting at the seams with intelligence, wit and self consciousness. Based on a true story the film revolves around the infamous Bling Ring, a group of wannabe celebrities living in LA who steal from the properties of the rich and famous for a year without being caught.

 

The film's opening sequence is a vision of whats to come, with a distorted Sleigh Bells track pounding over a sequence of theft, designer clothes and celebrities being chased by paparazzi, giving a great first impression. From here we meet the various characters, each displaying a significant lack of soul or purpose, and instead coming across as shallow and vain, and each with an obsession with fame. The plot is relatively thin here, with little in the way of character development or heart, instead opting for a soulless art house vibe. The film itself is an exploration of celebrity obsession, and one which favours deep commentary over heart or character development. In this regard it is similar to the recent Spring Breakers, in that both feature young characters taking drugs, partying and causing mayhem in a stylised and repetitive manner. The film really is repetitive, with scenes of the group of kids clubbing, snorting cocaine and stealing taking up the majority of the film, arguably a statement on the world in which the film depicts. Fuelling these moments of excess is a blaring soundtrack of EDM and Hip-Hop, which ties into the film excellently, particularly during one car scene (I won't spoil). By the end of the film, its clear that Coppola is providing a deep and meaningful opinion piece on how she sees the world of Hollywood and celebrity culture. In this aspect the film succeeds immensely, with Coppola's witty script and astonishing visuals shedding light on the aspirations of today's youth and providing just enough plot to make the film watchable.

 

In terms of performances, Emma Watson is a clear standout. Her character is one of the funniest in the film, and provides some great parodic humour through her airhead attitude. It is surprising to see Watson in such a different role from her usual English rose approach, and proves that she does have a brilliant talent, even if she does still overcompensate with her eyebrows and forehead occasionally. Katie Chang also provides a solid performance as the empty and emotionless ring leader Rebecca. Her disregard for anything other than being famous and meeting her idol Lindsay Lohan is both amusing and sickening, depicting what Coppola sees as a major problem within American society. Apart from the two standouts, the rest of the cast are fine, but aren't as interesting as Watson and Chang's characters, leaving them little to work with.

 

The Bling Ring is aesthetically pleasing too, Coppola injects her ability to create a mood into the film, something that Lost In Translation did perfectly, to create a disturbing dystopia of drugs, money, guns and possession that reflects today's celebrity culture. There are a couple of fantastic visual scenes within the piece, one is an extremely slow zoom shot as the group rob a glass mansion, providing one continuous, silent scene of an entire robbery. The other is a short scene in which the male character Marc is dancing in his room to 'Drop it Low' while he dresses in various designer garments, all of this is shot through the webcam on his laptop. The scene struck me in that displays the lack of direction in these kids lives, while it may seem that they are living the celebrity lifestyle, in reality they are doing nothing but pretending. Another brilliant technical aspect of the film is the soundtrack, as mentioned before its a mixture of contemporary EDM and Hip-Hop which fits the film perfectly, Azealia Banks, Sleigh Bells and Ester Dean all feature, and lyrically provide a fitting soundtrack to the drugs and excess depicted on screen.

 

This commentary on celebrity culture, obsession, fame and excess is fantastic, if at times hard to watch. It's flaws are plain to see, but at the same time fit with the soulless and shallow themes of the piece. Emma Watson's amusing performance is perhaps the saving grace of the film, giving life to an otherwise endless montage of celebrity and youth culture, and is worth the price of admission alone. If you can take a step back from films and watch them analytically, The Bling Ring will provide some great commentary to think about, on the other hand if you're looking for a standard genre film, The Bling Ring will seem like a shallow piece of trash, and you would do better to look elsewhere. Overall a brilliant entry from Sofia Coppola, who again proves her critics wrong by creating an original and well directed piece of cinema.

 

8/10