REVIEW: POPULAIRE

Going to see Roinsard's latest feature, Populaire, I was fairly open minded. The trailer portrays the film to show the story of a secretary entering a speed-typing competition with hints toward a romance between her boss/coach. In reality, the film shows so much more than this and is filled with interesting content. One of the key plot points that interested me was the secretary, Rose's, relationship with her father. Through the means of the competition, we get a subplot of Rose's relationship with her disapproving father. This ignorance of the older generations disapproval of both the newly popularised profession of a secretary combined with his disregard for the fame and money that could come with winning the competition makes the audience sympathise with Rose, a woman who is trying to do the best for herself in a time where women perhaps weren't given the independence that they are in the modern day.

With the acting by both Romain Duris and Déborah François being exceptional (perhaps Oscar-worthy? Watch this space), the film is a light hearted comic love story between an unlikely couple that is easy to watch and highly enjoyable.

I have an undying love for French cinema, the passion and excitement that has been there for decades and decades never fails to impress me, from the likes of Jean-Luc Godard's 1960 masterpiece 'Breathless' to Jean-Pierre Jeunet's stunning 'Amelie', released in 2001, French director's seem to have a timeless perfection for the small details, and in Populaire's case, this comes through in the mise en scene.

Set in the '50s, Populaire is a highly stylised film, with everything from the outfits, to the props

(typewriter porn, if you ask me), and even simply the colours. The film feels like a dream in a lot of scenes due to the colours and outfits, fitting in with Rose's situation, she is living the dream of every young girl in France. Much of the joy of watching the film comes with the stylised miss en scene working in collaboration with a solid and fun script.

Opening night at the cinema in East London I saw it in was not very busy, perhaps because of the French language of the film, or perhaps of the pure lack of mass-media marketing of the film (I attend the cinema numerous times a week and have only seen the trailer a few times, and only ever seen three posters for the film at London Underground stations), however despite the films lack of audience in this one cinema, I believe that Populaire is an amazing addition to the already fantastic French films that have been circulating international cinemas in recent years.

THE TOP FIVE LESSER-KNOWN FILMS OF ALFRED HITCHCOCK:

I am a self-proclaimed Hitchcock fanatic. My early to mid teenage life was spent reading, watching and learning of Alfred Hitchcock and his works, and I think it is important, for film students such as myself especially, that people are comfortable with his works and can spot his outstanding films from his good films from his not-so-great films.

Sir Alfred Hitchcock made 52 films in his lifetime, an astonishing amount that can leave people lost when wondering which of his films to start with. A lot of people will start with Hitch's later works, taking the appeal of colour and a more advanced finished piece, however, this is not the correct way to go about looking at Hitchcock's work in terms of standard, with it often being the older films that feature the most interesting plots and experimental cinematography.

Here is a list of five Hitchcock films I think you should see in order to witness the man's brilliance in full (This is besides the obvious, most famous of his films such as Psycho, Rear Window and Vertigo, which are all awesome and I highly recommend checking them out, too).

5. ROPE (1948).

Rope is a film regarding the overindulgence of the privileged. When a high member of society whom the two main characters of this film look up to suggests that murder should perhaps be legal, the two boys take the comment as an instruction, killing their classmate and deciding to host a party for the occasion. With the dead body in a trunk in the middle of the room.
The plot sets the audience up with tension from the beginning. With constant scenes of interest taking place with the trunk in shot, Hitchcock uses the mise-en-scene of this party atmosphere and gives the audience more information than the majority of characters in the film have. A Hitchcock classic that shows his title of 'Master of Suspense' to be true.

4. FAMILY PLOT (1976).

Family Plot is a comedy thriller filmed in the '70s that proves Hitchcock can break his well-known suspense thriller genre and make a suspense comedy. A con artist couple end up unsuspectingly tracking down a pair of serial kidnappers and in typical '70s style the film is hilarious throughout.
It seems that Hitchcock wanted to prove a point before he passed away. This was his last ever film and it comes across that he saw himself as more than just that guy who directed a few good suspense films throughout the 20th century. This film shows the true brilliance of Hitchcock, through storyline, casting and camera work, we get a true feeling of how much Hitchcock developed as a director throughout his career.

3. THE PLEASURE GARDEN (1927).

We are going from Hitchcock's last ever film, Family Plot, to Hitchcock's first ever film, The Pleasure Garden, which proves the point that time and technology is meaningless when looking for hidden gems in directors filmographies.
The Pleasure Garden tells the story of two young girls. Both are virtuous and sweet at the beginning, however a transformation occurs in both of the girls lives once one finds fame and fortune. A story with a similar theme to Rope, how excess can lead to peoples downfall.
The film shows numerous breathtaking works of cinematography and editing, with a superimposed ghost appearing towards the end. The film shows groundbreaking work in cinema and is truly a must watch when trying to appreciate Hitchcock's works. Try and compare this film to Family Plot in every way possible, the development of the director is as apparent as ever and these two films combined show the true brilliance of both the man and his films.

2. STRANGERS ON A TRAIN (1951).

Telling the story of two strangers who meet on a train (really? who would have thought?). These two people from entirely different worlds make a deal to each commit a murder for the other person, that way there is no tie to the murderer and the crime they commit. Nothing could go wrong. Right?
This film is an extremely enjoyable watch, with performances by all actors being outstanding. Some of the scenes in this film genuinely still creep me out and the climax in the fun fair is one of my favourites of all Hitchcock films.
The amount of love I have for this film is hard to explain, and perhaps that is one of the reasons why it is so special, that it exceeds my words and has left me speechless at its brilliance.

1. NORTH BY NORTHWEST (1959).

I was not sure whether to put this film on here, as it is supposed to be a list of films that aren't well heard of by Hitchcock and I suppose you could say that a lot of people are aware of this piece of work, however in my opinion it is majorly underrated and deserves a lot more attention than it gets.
This is my all time favourite Hitchcock film, the story of a man who gets accused of being a spy and then gets chased cross-country after a group of people trying to kill him. The film is iconic in many different ways, think of the crop-duster near-death scene, the mesmerising ending taking place on Mt. Rushmore and the endless plot twists that keep the audience on the edge of their seat throughout the whole film.
Cary Grant is superb in this film, playing the role of Roger Thornhill amazingly, and Hitchcock shows his wide range of ability with numerous camera techniques (drunk driving, anyone?) and amazing choice of script. The comedy is just enough and all around this film tops not only my list of lesser-known Hitchcock films, it takes the title as my all-time favourite Hitchcock film.

RECOMMENDATION: PERSONA (1966)

Ingmar Bergman is almost the secret God of cinema. Really, only people with an intense interest in film are familiar with him and have seen many of his films, however the are aware of the works of Bergman are very aware of the incredible talent and passion shown in the Swedish filmmaker's works.

'Persona' tells the story of the relationship between a nurse and her patient. It is not extremely long, just over the 80 minutes mark, however the amount of depth and brilliance involved in this hour and twenty minutes is enough to have the audience thinking about it for much longer than their time in front of the screen.

I've heard numerous comments from people after their first viewing of the film, many suggest that "it doesn't make sense" or they "didn't know what was going on" which is fine. The film is purposefully confusing and self aware, knowing that the theme it is dealing with is extremely in-depth, and I think that Bergman would be upset if everyone understood the film and it's implications after a first viewing. The film follows the 'art cinema' movement, with a non-linear narrative, numerous cuts to seemingly abstract situations and also a repeated shot from a different perspective. Granted, the film can be a little mind-boggling, but stick with it and involve yourself completely with the plot and you're in for one of the most beautiful film experiences of your life. Believe me.

Stated in the picture above as 'one of the ten greatest films of all time', Ingmar Bergman's '66 triumph, 'Persona' is definitely a worthy film for kicking off the recommendation side to this site.

WEEKLY FILM ROUND-UP #1.

In order to kickstart this website with daily content, I thought a weekly round up of all the films watched by myself was a good way to begin the posts.

I’m starting on a bizarre Wednesday as this is where the inspiration has come from, however I might possibly change the day of these posts to a Sunday or a Monday, depending on my schedule.

As I was so busy with starting up university last year, I didn’t get a chance to check out all of the Oscar nominees for the Best Picture award, and now, as university is finished for summer, I thought it would be a perfect time to catch up on some of the films of 2012 that I have heard many times being both praised and criticised. Therefore this week’s round up will feature last years Oscar nominees, and I’ll save the newer/older films I have watched this past week for my next round up (this isn’t only confusing me.. right?).

 1. SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK. dir. David O. Russell.
(Starring: Bradley Cooper, Jennifer Lawrence, Robert De Niro)

 I was going into this film with a completely open mind. The only thing I had heard about it was that it featured some characters with mental illness’. I was perhaps thinking that the film would involve cliche performances and characters, following in the footsteps of many previous films dealing with the same issue (I do not rate Forman’s ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ at all).
I was excitedly surprised when watching this film, however. The stellar performances from both Cooper and Lawrence made the film extremely enjoyable to watch. These amazing performances combined with the interestingly dark, yet comedic script made for one of my favourite films of last year.

2. LIFE OF PI. dir. Ang Lee.
(Starring: Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan)

I think my appreciation for this film was slightly hindered by the masses of the public raving about its brilliance. Without prior praise, I would have said that the film was good, the CGI was incredible and groundbreaking and the acting was also good. However, after hearing all the positive reviews, I couldn’t help myself watching the film with my expectations higher than ever. And I really wish I could have changed this.
Starting off on the best part of the film, the CGI was absolutely breathtaking. Combined with amazing editing, this tiger who is not even a real creation has the audience sympathising through the emotion of his eyes. This film is, technologically, the most groundbreaking piece of cinema of our time and it would be ignorant to ignore that when reviewing the film. What was slightly under par was the story. I’m fully aware that this may not be the filmmaker’s fault as the film was an adaptation, but I felt that the plot lacked so much more depth that it could have held. I was losing interest, and I think that it was possibly due to the fact that we know Pi is going to survive from the outset. Perhaps featuring an older Pi at the start was a mistake, making all of his struggles out at sea not half as effective as they would have if the ending was not clarified.
Overall the film was beautiful and a pleasure to watch, fully deserving of the technological praise and awards it has received.

3. SKYFALL. dir. Sam Mendes.
(Starring: Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Ralph Fiennes)

My enjoyment of this film was the one that surprised me the most. This is one of those films that I would never choose out of a bunch, but boy, am I glad I chose to watch it.
I am not an avid James Bond fan, in fact I have seen probably less than a handful of films featuring 007 himself. This film featured absolutely stunning cinematography by Roger Deacons and was a joy to watch. The excitement levels of the film were maintained throughout and the plot twists and turns more than a day at Thorpe Park. With stunning performances from Judi Dench, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Whishaw and of course, Daniel Craig, this film makes the audience gasp out loud both in awe of the brilliant action sequences and also with a sneaky cliffhanger at the end.

 4. ARGO. dir. Ben Affleck.
(Starring: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston)

This film was a well deserved winner of the Oscars last year. The film gave me goosebumps several times and featured a closing half hour that is quite possibly the most tense of any movie I have ever seen. With absolutely amazing performances by all actors, a flawless plot and beautiful cinematography and scenery, this film ticks all the boxes and is a classic example of what a winner of the Best Picture award should feature.
This thriller is the best I have seen in a long time, with dramatic moments, comedic moments and breathtaking moments, there is no words that can do this cinematic masterpiece justice. Perhaps the film has so much effect as it is relevant in the terms of numerous uprising countries at the moment, giving the audience a lot of reason to empathise with the six escapees of the hostage situation, or perhaps the movie has mastered every technique of filmmaking and that is the reason behind the success. In any case, this film will definitely be one I will be putting on my favourites list and will be looking our for more of Ben Stiller’s work in the future.

ADAPTATIONS & THE GREAT GATSBY:

When looking at an adaptation, analysing the originality and cleverness of the story is something that cannot be done. Only minor details can be changed by the director in order to make an adaptation, and when looking critically at a film such as Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby, it is important to take note of this. What we can look at in terms of analysis is the cinematography, the screenplay and the (small) changes that Luhrmann did make to the classic novel.

Immediately this film screams Baz Luhrmann, the blinding colours and exaggerated everything gives a wonderful presentation of the roaring twenties, a time of excess and partying. If there is one thing that I have talked to friends and fellow film students about in agreement, it is that the film is extremely aesthetically pleasing and enjoyable to watch purely on the basis of the glamour of the whole thing.

If there's one thing that I heard people moaning about before the movies release, it was the music. Let me just take this time to say how these people clearly have not seen a Baz Luhrmann film before. He made Shakespeare with a soundtrack consisting of Radiohead. The guy is a musical genius, in my opinion, the songs were so fitting and it is quite rightly so that the soundtrack is doing extremely well in sales.

Adding Nick's situation at the start and end of the film was a clever way of introducing the narrative from his point of view. Although any changes to the novel were going to upset people, Luhrmann stuck to the story perfectly, in my opinion, only changing what needed to be changed for cinematic purposes.

The film is outstanding. At just over two hours long, it presents a classic piece of 20th century literature for a 21st century audience, managing to hold a sold out audiences attention and produce laughs, screams and tears, even though the novel came out over 90 years ago and the majority of both viewings I have attended have been people who have read the book (I talk to random people at the cinema, is that bad? Probably). Go and see this film if you haven't yet.

FAST & FURIOUS 6 REVIEW:

I have never seen a Fast & Furious film before.
I had never seen a Fast & Furious film before tonight.

I thought, going into this film with a couple of university friends, that I would hate it. Action is not my thing at all. The opening, lets say, twenty minutes were okay, followed by pretty much an hour of constant car chases and fight sequences. During this hour, it was almost impossible for someone like myself, who had never seen any of the previous films in the franchise, to get a grip on the characters, and who is who, who is fighting with each other & who is fighting against each other.
A very confusing car chase (the first one, for those who've seen it) had me confused, characters seemed to be shooting at each other without reason and I could not, for the life of me, tell who was fighting for what team. This car scene, along with the other fight scenes of the first hour, really made that experience almost unenjoyable.

After the first hour however, in what I like to call the 'second' part of the film, everything changed. These characters who I had only been introduced to an hour before had me hooked and the development in narrative was at a perfect pace. The mixture of comedy and drama in the story was enough to get my interests back in the film and the focus switched from these fast cars and hot women to a genuinely interesting plot.

The climax of the film comes with a really long scene in an army base. An aircraft carrier is involved and things get crazy. The use of CGI is mesmerising, with explosions happening every five seconds, but the thing that caught my attention the most in this scene was the most effective piece of camerawork in the whole film. A simple focus-shift of the camera shows vital piece of information (this is a no spoiler zone) and the audience of the cinema (which was surprisingly large for a 10.30pm showing over a week after the release of the film) gasped in amazement.

This is a short review, I don't feel I was emotionally involved enough with the film to write an in-depth analysis of it, however I will leave you with some closing comments.

If you go and see this film, stick with it for the first 45 minutes or so. As with the majority of films, it starts out slow, but the pace does pick up and you will find yourself being taken away with this whirlwind film. A fun, action-packed film that solidifies any doubt in your mind that family comes first over everything in the Fast & Furious franchise (hey, I did some research).

OVERVIEWING CANNES: TOP 3:

With the 66th annual Cannes Film Festival about coming to a close, I thought it would be a perfect introductory post to mention some of the films that were shown that I am most excited to see. As an average film goer, I obviously did not attend Cannes, my guess is as good as yours as to which films will be the biggest successes.

1. ONLY GOD FORGIVES. dir. Nicolas Winding Refn.
(Starring: Ryan Gosling, Kristin Scott Thomas)

The reviews surrounding the premiere of this film were overridden by the apparent boo’s from some (disrespectful) members of the audience. The graphic and extreme violence caused some audience members to leave, and there was an overall sense of disappointment with this film, that was gaining an extreme amount of hype on the internet. The film, according to the trailer, looks to be interesting, and I think a lot of the negative criticisms came with the reporter’s imagining the film to be almost a sequel to Drive, Refn’s last film starring Gosling. The expectations of the audience is something that can completely corrupt somebodies opinion of a film, and I, for one, will be going into the screening of this film with no other films in mind for comparison.

Only God Forgives is out in UK cinemas on August 2nd.

2. AS I LAY DYING. dir. James Franco.
(Starring: James Franco, Logan Marshall-Green)

I am a huge fan of James Franco’s. I am a huge fan of William Faulkner. I will most likely be a huge fan of this film. After reading Franco’s post on Vice magazine defending Luhrmann’s recent adaptation of The Great Gatsby, it is proven that Franco is in complete confidence of the requirements needed in order to make a classic novel to film adaptation successful. There needs to be no more further explanation for my wanting to see this film. I’m excited by every project that Franco gets involved in, and I don’t think this film will disappoint me.

3. THE BLING RING. dir. Sofia Coppola.
(Starring: Katie Chang, Israel Broussard, Emma Watson)

With a father who directed such iconic films as The Godfather and Apocalypse Now, filmmaking must be a supplement for blood in Coppola’s body. Establishing herself over the past few years as a hopeful director, The Bling Ring seems to take an interesting perspective on the more obscene youth culture of America. The film sees Emma Watson once again speaking in that …weird false American accent that was apparent in The Perks of Being a Wallflower. I think this film will be different from the two above, in the fact that it seems to be a chick-flick on cocaine, although still thought-provoking and interesting from a film student’s perspective. Sofia Coppola has proved herself before (Note: The Virgin Suicides) and will most likely do it again, and again, just as her father did.

The Bling Ring is out in UK cinemas on July 5th.