- Heists, prison breaks, car chases, double-crossings, a
twist ending – Son of a Gun features
pretty much every staple of the action genre you can think of. Fortunately
things don’t get too bloated thanks to a compelling relationship between protagonist
JR (Brenton Twaites) and father figure Brendan (a typically watchable Ewan
McGregor), who become criminal partners after meeting in prison.
Above all though this is a sleek, zippy action
thriller with an emphasis on thrills over character, but with just enough
personal interest to make you care about them
- Crucially, David Alvardo and Jason Sussberg’s new
documentary is called The Immortalists
and not, say, ‘Immortality’. This subtle semantic difference confirms that the filmmakers’
interests are more geared towards the type of people who dedicate their lives
to ‘curing’ aging and what drives them to do so, rather than the scientific
possibility and the moral implications of living forever.
That’s not to say these fascinating questions aren’t raised
at all – there are handy on-screen graphics to explain the more complex scientific
theories, for instance - but that the film is more concerned with prompting us
to consider the motives of people preoccupied with eradicating the aging
process. Do they fear dying? Or the death of loved one? Or do they have the
benefit of all humanity in mind?
As you’d perhaps expect the scientists documented are
somewhat eccentric, especially the bearded, pint-guzzling Aubrey de Grey, the
man who came up with the often quoted idea that the first person to live to
1000 might already be alive. They make for fascinating character studies and
prompt plenty of poignant reflections that will occupy your mind long after the
credits have rolled.
- In some ways Monsters:
Dark Continent is a distinct departure from Gareth Edwards’ preceding film
Monsters, with a shift in tone from subdued romance to macho warfare. But its positioning
of the alien invaders at only the periphery of the story is very reminiscent of
the original.
Where the first film used the sci-fi set-up to explore
themes of immigration, Dark Continent imagines a war against the aliens to occur
alongside the ongoing US involvement in the Middle-East, and in doing so raises
questions of the effectiveness and morality of foreign military intervention. It’s
an intriguing premise, but one that the film shows little interest for the
first 2/3rds of its running time, where instead a bunch of bland,
one-dimensional soldiers are introduced, and long kinetic sequences of them
fighting that fail to draw us in.
But the final third becomes strangely contemplative
and philosophical, while the characters are placed into scenarios that finally
give them some overdue depth. This final part somewhat redeems the film, and
offers something to mull over for those willing to stick with it to the end.
- In Chinese film
Shadow Days, Liang Rewei (Liang Ming) and his pregnant girlfriend Pomegranate
(Li Ziqian) move from the city to a small rural village of his childhood, to
find a lifestyle at odds with his fond memories. Director Zhao Dayong uses
drained colours, a still camera, music-less soundtrack, long takes and sparse
dialogue, that rids the enforcers of the government’s one-child policy of any
of the glamour they perceive themselves as having.
The film can get bogged down in this sparse naturalism
and at times fail to grab our attention, especially in scenes with little
dialogue or narrative purpose, although the very occasional break into the
realm of the supernatural are made all the more creepy for their disparity. The
climax is devastating, but might have had a greater impact with more emphasis
on building character.
SP
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