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Day: 6 October 2013

Cornerhouse Pick of the Week: The Great Beauty

Written by Suraj Vara on . Posted in Film.

This week I went to see Paolo Sorrentino’s latest Oscar submission, La Grande Bellezza; upon exiting the Cornerhouse, I can see why it’s Oscar nominated. Sorrentino has teamed up with the fantastic acting talents of Toni Servillo to pay homage to the works of Federico Fellini and La Dolce Vita.

Servillo plays middle aged, high society journalist, Jep Gambarella, a man with an irresistible charisma who, after receiving a jolt from his past, goes out in search for something missing from his present.

The film has vibrant personality and a dark sense of humour which manifests in a critique of the superficiality and decadence in modern day society, religion, art, literature and the youth. Its subject matter can sometimes be a little disorientating, as in a particular scene when Jep addresses the audience directly, establishing the rules one must follow to show feigned grief when at a funeral; the disorientating part is in the next scene when he puts those rules into practice.

We can’t help but take to Jep Gambarella when we first meet him, holding a cigarette between his teeth in front of a broad grin. His opening scene is actually his 65th birthday, which is a decadent, raving rooftop party, filled with middle aged, and older, men and women, furiously dancing to the latest club music in a desperate attempt to reclaim their youth.

The further we follow Jep, the more we begin to love his soft approach and gentle demeanour, something which works well with his truthful and insightful commentary. His calm charisma in the dense and hectic nightlife of Rome draws in the audience who become powerless against his charming seductions, much like many of the women in the film. Soon, we find ourselves drawn into his search for a missing element in his life as he sifts through Rome, beyond its strings of clubs, strippers, alcohol and drugs.

Sorrentino’s script is far from vague or wasteful as it delivers sharp, witty dialogue in a refreshing explosion of dark humour, commenting on the experiences of getting old, especially in the privileged high society circles Jep often frequents. Furthermore, Sorrentino frames Rome’s beauty in a vibrant yet noir style giving the audience the opportunity to experience the city’s beauty culture as Jep does; the sculptured works of art within the palaces of Rome under candle light, Rome’s ancient ruins as well as a breath-taking view of the Colosseum from Jep’s apartment.

Although the film is abrupt at times and somewhat divergent from the plot, its exploration of the physical beauty of Rome, hidden beneath a seedy, intoxicated and decadent mask, pushed La Grande Bellezza into the realm of masterpieces; by the end of the film, we understand exactly what Jep means when he says “the trains in Italy are the best in the world, because they are the only ones that don’t go anywhere.”

TV Catch-up- What to Watch Last Week

Written by Robbie Davidson on . Posted in Film.

 Welcome to the new Mancunion TV Catch up where we tell you all the best things you missed from the last week to watch online in your downtime.

 

  A Single Man: In the year before Colin Firth won worldwide acclaim and an Oscar in the The King’s Speech, he starred in Tom Ford’s directorial debut as a bereaved English professor in 1960s Los Angeles. A quieter performance from Firth but no less deserving of praise. (Available on BBC iPlayer)

Piers Morgan’s Life Stories: If you like Piers Morgan and his sycophantic interviewing then you’ll likely want to catch up on his new series of Life Stories. His first interview is with Coronation Street actress, Julie Goodyear, which should give you some idea of the level of ‘celebrity’ on offer. (Available on ITV Player)

The Newsroom: If you’ve been watching Aaron Sorkin’s recent return to television then you’re likely as conflicted as this writer is. You may love it, you’ll probably hate parts of it, but you still don’t want to miss it. Stay tuned for an in depth look in a future issue, but in the meantime you can catch up on Sky Player.

Review: Rush

Written by Angus Harrison on . Posted in Film.

“Men love women, but what men really love…is cars.” This is surely a sentiment that only the most fervent Top Gear fan could sympathise with. Many certainly won’t identify with these words and during the blistering opening stretch of this movie, it would be easy to switch off. Yet, anticipating a shiny, hyper-masculine love letter to the fast cars and loose women of the 1970s Formula One circuit would be a mistake. This is a film about death.

Genre-hopping director Ron Howard manages to convert what could easily be mid-life crisis porn, into a genuinely exhilarating and emotionally engaging motion picture. The narrative focus of the film is the 1976 World Championship races, during which the rivalry between British playboy James Hunt and the studious, precise Austrian Niki Lauda, was at its height. Importantly, however, Howard spends the first bulk of the film less on racing and more on the strengths, flaws and vices of the two rivals. Chris Hemsworth brings his Godlike qualities, fresh from Thor, to James Hunt. He constructs, at first, an invincibly cool womaniser but then gradually laces him with vulnerability – most notably by vomiting before every race. Contrastingly Daniel Brühl’s Niki Lauda is unflinching in his focus and rigour, yet he softens as he meets and falls in love with Marlene Knaus, played by Alexandra Maria Lara. By giving the audience the breathing space to invest in the fragility of these two men, the stakes are insurmountably high during the subsequent racing scenes.

 

In many ways Rush has achieved what so many blockbusters have failed to this summer. Yes it is cheesy and occasionally relies on some dated cinematic tropes – blurry POV shots of a drinking binge? However it realises the full potential of character investment. This enables race scenes that don’t rely on CGI or even soundtrack to achieve maximum adrenalin. Rather the audience is truly convinced of the peril. We are behind the wheel as well and it is truly terrifying.

It would be wrong to say that Rush is the best film this year, however it is surely one of the most solidly enjoyable efforts. Howard’s direction is magnificent, purely down to how seamless it is. He soaks the film in glorious ‘70s nostalgia that gives the film the same sort of glow that Spielberg managed with 2002’s Catch Me If You Can. It is glossy to a point, it recycles many biopic clichés and the dialogue is corny at the best of times. Nevertheless, this is a film with pure adrenalin rushing through its veins.