• Actor: Willem Dafoe
• Character: Bobby Peru
• Film: Wild At Heart
Polished Performances
Posted in Uncategorized on August 11, 2016 by Mark WalkerThe Nice Guys
Posted in Action, Comedy, Crime, Mystery with tags 2016 on August 9, 2016 by Mark Walker
Director: Shane Black.
Screenplay: Shane Black, Anthony Bagarozzi.
Starring: Ryan Gosling, Russell Crowe, Angourie Rice, Kim Basinger, Matt Bomer, Keith David, Beau Knapp, Margaret Qualley, Yaya DaCosta, Lois Smith, Murielle Telio, Gil Gerard, Jack Kilmer, Ty Simpkins.
“Alright, which one of you cock-and-balls wants to make twenty bucks?”
Back in the 80’s and 90’s writer Shane Black was actually quite a prominent player in Hollywood and a big contributor to the hugely successful wave of “buddy-movies”. His writing credits extended to The Monster Squad, Lethal Weapon, The Last Boy Scout, Last Action Hero and The Long Kiss Goodnight before he decided to take a break from studio pressures. He returned in 2005 for his directorial debut Kiss Kiss Bang Bang before disappearing again, only to resurface with Iron Man 3 a few years ago. For those that grew up on Black’s earlier works (like myself), his latest in The Nice Guys should come as a fond reminder of his action/comedy antics. Continue reading
The BFG
Posted in Adventure, Family, Fantasy with tags 2016 on July 27, 2016 by Mark Walker
Director: Steven Spielberg.
Screenplay: Melissa Mathison.
Starring: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Jermaine Clement, Penelope Wilton, Rafe Spall, Rebecca Hall, Bill Hader, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, Adam Godley, Michael Adamthwaite, Daniel Bacon, Jonathan Holmes, Chris Gibbs, Paul Moniz de Sa.
“I hears your lonely heart, in all the secret whisperings of the world”
With the exception of The Adventures of Tintin in 2011, Steven Spielberg has been getting all serious on us over the last five years. He’s predominantly dealt with war, politics and espionage in War Horse, Lincoln and Bridge of Spies respectively. However, he now reunites with his E.T. screenwriter Melissa Mathison to bring a much loved children’s novel to the big screen in The BFG – a film which brings reminders of his fantastical adventures and his ability to deliver family friendly entertainment. Continue reading
Night And The City
Posted in Drama with tags 1992 on June 28, 2016 by Mark Walker
Director: Irwin Winkler.
Screenplay: Richard Price.
Starring: Robert DeNiro, Jessica Lange, Alan King, Cliff Gorman, Jack Warden, Eli Wallach, Barry Primus, Gene Kirkwood, Anthony Canarozzi, Byron Utley, Regis Philbin, Michael Badalucco, Michael Rispoli, Chuck Low.
“Harry, you ever hear of Murphy’s Law? Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. That law was dedicated to guys like you”.
Coming off the back of Martin Scorsese’s Cape Fear remake in 1991, Robert DeNiro and Jessica Lange collaborated again a year later on another remake; this time Jules Dassin’s 1950’s film-noir, Night and the City. The original had a lot of admirers which can often lead to a retread being heavily criticised and even though I haven’t seen Dassin’s version, Irwin Winkler’s certainly didn’t deserve the much maligned reception it received. Continue reading
Polished Performances
Posted in Uncategorized on June 17, 2016 by Mark Walker
The Road
Posted in Drama with tags 2009 on June 15, 2016 by Mark Walker
Director: John Hillcoat.
Screenplay: Joe Penhall.
Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall, Guy Pearce, Michael Kenneth Williams, Garret Dillahunt, Molly Parker, Bob Jennings, Agnes Herrmann, Buddy Sosthand, Kirk Brown, Jack Erdie.
“When you dream about bad things happening, it means you’re still fighting and you’re still alive. It’s when you start to dream about good things that you should start to worry”
I’ll always remember the experience I had reading Cormac McCarthy’s 2006 novel The Road. It wasn’t something I was initially drawn to but the fact that a film adaptation was in the pipeline led me to investigate further. It was a very bleak and emotionally shattering read but it was also morbidly fascinating and nigh-on impossible to put down. When I came to the end I remember wondering how this could be visually translated to the screen considering it delivered so little in terms of descriptive prose. Credit then to Australian director John Hillcoat for delivering a faithful recreation of a very intimate novel. Continue reading
Polished Performances
Posted in Uncategorized on June 2, 2016 by Mark Walker
• Actor: Al Pacino
• Character: Sonny Wortzik
• Film: Dog Day Afternoon
Continue reading
