The Card Counter – Dark and Depressing – Film Review

Posted on November 8, 2021 by ashleymanningwriter
The Card Counter (2021) - IMDb

Director: Paul Schrader

Writer: Paul Schrader

Starring: Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, Tye Sheridan, and Willem Dafoe

Rating: ★★★½

The Card Counter proudly states at the beginning that this is presented by Martin Scorsese, reuniting him with Taxi Driver and Bringing out the Dead writer Paul Schrader, who wrote and directed this one. A haunting and often intense story about the limits of what someone can do to someone, morality and guilt.

William ‘Tell’ Tillich (Oscar Isaac) learnt to count cards in prison, a place he never thought he would thrive in. Since being released he goes from casino to casino winning just enough to make the casino notice him, but still get away with it. He’s method, living in hotel rooms as he travels from city to city. Cirk (Tye Sheridan) spots William at one of the casinos, and knowing his history asks him to help with getting revenge on Major John Gordo (Willem Dafoe), who is responsible for William’s stretch in prison. William doesn’t want Cirk to go down a bad path, so joins the professional poker circuit to win enough money to help Cirk get started on a better life.

From the beginning of the film, with a slow fade-in on a prison cafeteria and Oscar Isaac’s voice over, you know this is going to be a dark film. There’s a sinister tone just underneath everything you’re watching. For the longest time this feels like it’s just going to be about gambling and then William’s past is revealed and there’s some twisted moments. It’s hard to talk about without spoiling anything, and this is something that shouldn’t be spoilt.

Oscar Isaac gives a phenomenal performance. Completely unrecognisable from his recent roles in Star Wars and Dune. Here he’s quiet, intense and can be quite scary. Everything about him is calm and collected, as he plays each hand of cards, and covers every object in each hotel room with cloth to keep it sanitised. There’s one moment around half way where he tells Cirk about his past, and Isaac delivers the dialogue perfectly. You feel his pain and it feels real and at the same time you are conflicted with his character.

It’s Paul Schrader doing what he does best, a character study into someone who is neither a hero or a villain. You really get under the skin of William and by the end you can’t tell if he’s a good person or not, either way he’s looking out for Cirk, who he feels responsible for and is the real victim of the story. His life isn’t off to the best of starts, with an abusive dad who has killed himself and a mum who abandoned him. Willaim tries to help, but Cirk isn’t completely willing to accept it.

The Card Counter is an interesting film. It’s not as good as Taxi Driver, which is something that everything Paul Schrader has been involved with since has suffered from. Once you write one of the best films of all time about a twisted character, it’s hard to live up to it. The Card Counter is a good film, but it suffers from some bad pacing. It still leaves you with a dark feeling that sets it apart from most other films. After watching it, you’ll be running it around in your head over and over again, picking it apart.

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Gamera – Monster Mondays

Posted on November 8, 2021 by ashleymanningwriter
Gamera: The Giant Monster - ARROW

I quite liked this film, it’s nothing spectacular but it’s still enjoyable. Gamera appears very early on in the film, unlike Godzilla in the 1954 original, the bombs go off and he’s there ready to attack. Godzilla is more of an unknown presence in the original. Gamera is a rip-off of Godzilla, in style and plot, it’s very similar. The effects are a lot better in Gamera, since it was made over a decade later. The turtle suit looks cool.

In an attempt to recreate the success of Godzilla, Daiei Film made Gamera, their own giant monster, this time a giant turtle. He can breathe fire, fly and is almost indestructible. There are 12 Gamera films in the series, my plan is to watch each one over 12 weeks and write an informal post about each one as the start of my Monster Mondays series. I think it’s best to see monster films like this as a bit of fun, so I won’t be taking it very seriously.

I like that the first attempt to destroy Gamera is just to flip him on his back because turtles can’t get up. He’ll starve then. Instead, he just retreats into his shell and flies away. It’s just ridiculous. The way they defeat Gamera at the end is also pretty funny. It’s a spoiler, so stop reading if you care, but they trap him in a rocket and send him to mars. It’s over the top fun.

There’s a moment early on where a child, who is obsessed with turtles, meets Gamera. He climbs up a lighthouse to see him closer. Gamera then attacks the lighthouse, almost killing the child, but saves him and gives him back to his family. The boy’s sister says Gamera saved him, without really acknowledging that he wouldn’t have been at risk if it wasn’t for Gamera.

Gamera: The Giant Monster (1965) - IMDb

I do like that he is misunderstood and isn’t trying to be a full villain. Godzilla originally just wreaked havoc wherever he went, while Gamera is just looking for food. I think overall the film is fun, but not the best. It’s very slow and takes a while to get going, even though Gamera is there so early on. It’s still an interesting start and I’m looking forward to seeing what comes next.

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Spencer – A Story That Doesn’t Try To Be Accurate, But Instead Capture The Tragedy of True Events – Film Review

Posted on November 7, 2021 by ashleymanningwriter
Spencer (2021) - IMDb

Director: Pablo Larraín

Writer: Steven Knight

Starring: Kristen Stewart, Timothy Spall, Jack Farthing, Sean Harris, and Sally Hawkins

Rating: ★★★★

Spencer is a fictional telling of what could have happened at the Royal Christmas in 1991. The film opens with the description ‘a fable of a tragedy’, which sets the tone for the rest of the film. Director, Pablo Larraín previously directed Jackie, another biopic of an important woman in modern history. Spencer couldn’t be further from Jackie. Instead of attempting to be an accurate portrayal of Diana’s life, the film instead tries to present what could have been going through her mind. People going into this thinking they will get a historical portrayal of the People’s Princess may be disappointed, this isn’t The Crown, in fact it’s closer to a psychological horror than a biopic.

The film centres around the three days stay at Sandringham House for Christmas 1991. Princess Diana (Kristen Stewart) is late, being the last person to arrive, breaking the tradition of the Queen being the last person to arrive at the estate. From then on Diana is being constantly watched, with the media circling her at every opportunity. Diana is currently separating from Prince Charles, with this being the last Christmas she will spend at Sandringham.

Kristen Stewart is the heart and soul of this film. Her performance is simply breath-taking. You forget that you are watching Stewart as soon as she arrives on screen. She completely inhabits Princess Diana, capturing her mannerisms and speech patterns. Stewart should be getting nominations and awards from every direction when awards season comes around early next year. This is her best role to date and really shows how good of an actor she is. The entire film comfortably rests on her performance.

The other striking thing about the film is that it at time feels like a psychological horror film. Spencer doesn’t try to be historically accurate at all and instead explores the pressure that was on Princess Diana at the time, witnessing Prince Charles’s affair and their eventually separation, the expectations from the rest of the Royal Family and the constant hounding from the press. Combined they push Diana to the edge. The Royal Family are painted almost as villains in the film, with their silent judgement. Diana is convinced that they are conspiring against her, at one point asking the chef ‘will they kill me, do you think?’. It never goes off the rails or becomes scary, but there is an unsettling atmosphere running throughout.

She’s reading a book about Anne Boleyn, who she is related to, and sees a kindred soul within her. Anne Boleyn was killed under the suspicion that she was having an affair, when it was actually her husband, Henry VIII who was cheating on her. Diana sees Boleyn as a mirror image of her and sees her story as a warning about what’s to come. It’s playing into the conspiracy theories that have gone around since Diana’s death in 1997, while at the same time creating a strange atmosphere of suspense and terror. At points Boleyn speaks to Diana, both through dreams and at one point as a ghost. Diana’s mind is breaking under the pressure on her life.

There is a scene late in the film, where Diana escapes the confines of Christmas, and goes back to her childhood home, which is now falling apart and dangerous. It’s dark and creaky, with the wood decaying around her. It feels very close to a haunted house, literally. Throughout the entire film is a hauntingly beautiful score from Jonny Greenwood. It screeches over the rest of the film, creating a genuine sense of dread, especially since we all know how the true story ends. It leaves you with a sickly feeling in your stomach.

Spencer throws away any notion of being true to the actual events, right from the opening moments. It is completely fictional. Instead the film captures the sense of impending doom as Diana’s marriage has fallen apart, and the rest of her life is left in shatters. There are moments of true sorrow with Diana’s struggle with bulimia and self-harm all overcoated with an unnerving atmosphere. Director Pablo Larraín has created something very unique and chilling.   

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Eternals – Breaking the Marvel Formula – Film Review

Posted on November 7, 2021 by ashleymanningwriter
Eternals (2021) - IMDb

Director: Chloé Zhao

Writer: Chloé Zhao, Patrick Burleigh, Ryan Fripo, and Kaz Fripo

Starring: Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Angelina Jolie, Salma Hayek, Kit Harrington, Kumail Nanjiani, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Barry Keoghan, Don Lee, and Harish Patel

Rating: ★★★★

The latest film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been received with mixed reviews, currently the lowest rated MCU film on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s the most divisive film to date in the long running franchise, as it breaks away from the usual formula and becomes something much more unique and exciting. While the humour and fighting are here, the film feels different to what’s come before.

The Eternals arrived on Earth around seven thousand years ago. Their mission is to protect Earth from the Deviants, monsters that feed on humans. While doing this they aren’t allowed to alter the course of human development or meddle in any conflicts. It’s been centuries and the Deviants are long thought to be dead, but the Eternals are still here, some of them have started to live normal human lives. Sersi (Gemma Chan) is a teacher in London, in a relationship with a human, Dane (Kit Harrington). Life is pretty normal, until a Deviant attacks and forces the Eternals to reunite to save the world.

As per usual for a Marvel film, the stakes are high. In this film they feel even higher, helped massively by the large cast of new characters where they genuinely feel like they’re in danger throughout the fights. There isn’t a lot of plot armour here and there are a few shocking moments. It’s a breath of fresh air, as each fight feels dangerous and exciting. Adding to this is the lack of a definitive villain. The story isn’t just good vs evil, there is more of a moral dilemma at play here. It’s an interesting story and co-writer and director Chloé Zhao does a great job at letting you see it from all angles. The objective is to save Earth, but at what cost?

The Eternals themselves are all great. They are the formation of some of our myths and legends, with Ikaris (Richard Madden) and Thena (Angelina Jolie), who would inspire the stories of Icarus and Athena of Greek legend. Kingo (Jumail Nanjiani) has spent his time on Earth creating a dynasty of actors. To stop people getting suspicious, every so often he recreates his image as his son to continue his acting. Kingo is the funniest of the bunch, with most of the laugh out loud moments coming from him. Nanjiani is great in this role, delivering perfect comic timing.

This is a beautiful film, and from Marvel you wouldn’t really accept anything less. The ancient city of Babylon, the CGI fights and creatures all look stunning. Every Marvel film seems to outdo the one that came before when it comes to visuals and this one is great to watch. Everything looks real, and you’re completely swept away into the fantastical world.

Aside from the epic Avengers Endgame, this is the longest Marvel film to date. You do feel the length at points, but it never becomes boring. There is a lot to cram into the runtime, with the development of so many characters. It does a great job of making them all feel important and letting you get to know them all, but there are moments that are heavy on exposition. There probably isn’t a better way to tell this story in a single film, without it becoming even longer. It has a similar runtime to the recent Dune, but in my opinion doesn’t feel as slow paced. It jumps through the seven thousand year history of the Eternals bringing you up to date with their story and making you care enough that the climactic fight feels epic.

Eternals tries to do something different with the MCU. It tells an epic story that spans millennia without feeling like a chore, there is also a lot more depth to the final battle than just good guys punch bad guys. You do completely empathise with both sides. It also sets up sequels that hopefully won’t take long to be made. There are two post-credit scenes, one in the middle of the credits and one at the end, neither are worth staying for.  

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We Couldn’t Become Adults – A Depressing Story About Growing Older and Time Lost – Film Review

Posted on November 6, 2021 by ashleymanningwriter
We Couldn't Become Adults (2021) - IMDb

Director: Yoshihiro Mori

Writer: Ryô Takada

Starring: Mirai Moriyama, Sairi Itoh, Masahiro Higashide, Sumire, Atsushi Shinohara, Yuko Oshima, and Masato Haiwara

Rating: ★★★★

We Couldn’t Become Adults is a reflective film, that shows a forty-six-year-old man looking back on his life and reliving the events that led him to where he is now. It’s a yearning for time lost, an idea that runs through all of our lives. It’s in our nature that we all have an obsession with looking back at better times and yearning to relive them. It’s why things like Stranger Things are so massive, because it plays on nostalgia.

Makoto Sato (Mirai Moriyama) works at a graphics company, that produces the graphics for various TV shows. It’s 2020, during the pandemic and Makoto runs into an old friend on a night out, that leads him to recollect his life. The lost love that he never quite got over, the people he’s fallen out of contact with and the dreams that were never quite achieved.

The film starts in the present, with Makoto trying to help his friend who is struggling with depression, it then moves backwards through time, showing key moments in Makoto’s life. Each year that the story touches on gets it’s own chapter title, that gives a feeling of what the year is about. There are good moments, and bad moments, but through it all is a sense of melancholy because you already know where things are going.

The key plot revolves around Makoto’s first true love, Kaori Kato (Sairi Itoh). In the late 1990s, their relationship blossomed, and Makoto would do anything for her. You first see the fallout from their breakup and then the break-up itself, which is described very early on. She left him on New Year’s Day 2000, without a reason, just saying ‘next time, I’ll bring the CDs’. The lack of closure haunts Makoto, so when you go back and see the beginnings of their relationship it’s diluted with sadness. The way the film plays with time, and how you feel it’s doomed before it starts, feels very reminiscent of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Both films give you a picture of an almost perfect relationship, but you know the ending before you see the good moments.

The film is really downbeat with lots of dark moments. Makoto’s relationship with his next partner is stained by his past. He can never truly commit, resulting in him being left again. He’s not a bad person, or treats people poorly, but he’s not able to move on with his life. As the title suggests, he’s never really grown up beyond his first love.

The way the film plays with time is done in a really clever way. There are so many moments that make more sense as the film goes on, and seeing the context, but at the same time you’re never lost in the narrative. It’s always easy to follow and understand. It feels like one of the those films you could watch multiple times and get a better understanding each time.

We Couldn’t Become Adults is a sombre look at how the past affects us long after events have happened. It’s something that feels very relatable and has moments that leave you with a dark feeling inside. This is something that will stay with you for a long time.  

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