Review: Spotlight (2015)

This is the one I’ve been waiting for! I haven’t been enjoying the Oscar movies as much as I hoped I would this year, but every time I’ve gone to the cinema I’ve gotten a little more excited for Spotlight. We’ve had to wait for it for so long in the UK! I wasn't even remotely looking forward to this for two reasons, I had a feeling the story was going to stay with me for a while (I wasn't wrong!) and it seemed very talky, I wasn't convinced it was going to hold my attention.

Spotlight is the retelling of the true story of how the Boston Globe’s Spotlight team uncovered the horrendous scandal of child molestation within the Catholic churches, and the cover ups that came with it. It’s one of those movies, just like The Big Short, that covers a real life story that I’m aware of, yet know very little about, which is what made both so appealing to me.

I’m writing this the day after watching Spotlight, and I honestly don’t know where to start. I didn’t sleep well, it played on my mind that much. I’m growing a bit of a fascination with journalistic movies, having watched Zodiac and Nightcrawler most recently, so this was right up my street. I was enthralled within the first 10 minutes, the big offices of the Boston Globe reminded me of somewhere I used to work, and the leaving speech just brought back happy, but cringey memories.

I think what helped was the casting choices for the main Spotlight team. They’re all such likeable characters, with genuine chemistry, and it honestly felt like I was watching a documentary about a team that had been working with each other for years, rather than a movie. Each of the characters begins their year-long investigation with professional courtesy, but as the story unfolds and the scandal grows, you can see it affect each of them on a personal level, and it’s in the second half when the tensions are running higher that you see just how well they can all act.

I really loved the fact that you bought in to every single character without having to spend ages delving into their personal lives, there was the odd passing comment about their lives here and there, Mikes marriage problems for example.  The film was completely focused on the investigation and the victims, this made it all the more difficult to watch for me, normally when a film is unsettling, I will focus on the other mini stories that are running through it.  This didn't have that option so you had no choice but to concentrate on the traumatic experiences of these victims.

Behind my awe however, lay an unsettling feeling of sorts. It’s so uncomfortable to listen to the stories of the survivors and victims of abuse. It’s one thing to read about it, but to hear someone say it out loud, it made me feel nauseous. There’s one scene in particular where Sacha (Rachel McAdams) is talking with a survivor as they walk through the town, straight past a huge church, with a children’s playground right in front of it. That’s an image I won’t be forgetting for a while.

Although it was already in the trailer, so I'd heard it before, there was a line of Michael Keaton’s that just stood out for me from everything else. “We got two stories here: a story about degenerate clergy, and a story about a bunch of lawyers turning child abuse into a cottage industry. Which story do you want us to write? Because we're writing one of them.” That was such a turning point!  There were some great lines in this film that really drew an impact but for me it was all about Mark Ruffalo, I can see why he is up for Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars.  The way he delivered each and every line showed every inch of emotion that the real Mike Rezendes must have felt.  This one stood out for me "It's time! They knew and they let it happen! To KIDS! Okay? It could have been you, it could have been me, it could have been any of us. We gotta nail these scumbags! We gotta show people that nobody can get away with this; Not a priest, or a cardinal or a freaking pope!"

Just over 2 hours passed, and as the final words came onto the screen, I felt a rush of different emotions. Disappointment, firstly, that this movie was over already. I didn’t know where the time had gone. Then came anger and disgust at the reality of the story, that lingered with me as I went to bed. Then, the morning after, or now, as I type this, amazement at just how brilliant this movie is.  Those final words on the screen literally broke my heart, it was horrifying to think of how many people were effected by the church and the subsequent cover ups.

Review: Minions (2015)

Back in 2010, Universal Pictures gave us an animated film that many never expected to love as much as they did. Three years later we were given a sequel, which failed to wow but certainly reminded us just how much we love Despicable Me. Fast forward to the present day and Gru’s minions are everywhere. They’re on pajamas, sweets, bedspreads, and now they even have their own film. I got the pleasure of watching Minions the way I think it should, with a kid by my side. Who said babysitting your brother had to be boring?

Minions is a prequel of sorts to Despicable Me, and tells us the story of how the minions came to be, and what they did before they found Gru. The story itself focuses on three main Minions, Kevin, Stuart and Bob, as they leave the rest of their pack (group? What’s the collective term for minions anyway? swarm? gaggle?) and try to find a new boss. Their journey leads them to Villain Con in Orlando, where they meet Scarlet Overkill (Sandra Bullock) and do everything they can to impress her.

The start of the film was painfully slow, and although the narration was needed, it felt like I was being read a children’s story and I felt quite bored.  I loved the beginning, although I had seen a lot of it in the trailer but I still loved the story telling and the narration. Once the minions arrived in Orlando though, the pace picked back up and the rest of the film was enjoyable.  I  did however get a bit bored in the middle but luckily my 2 year old niece didn't "Aunty Jenna, loooooooooooook" *points frantically at the screen* It did suffer I thought from the age-old issue of all the funniest moments being in the trailer.

There were two main things I loved about Minions. One was of course the little yellow cuties themselves, but with them being the main characters this time, we got to hear a lot more of their own language, which derives from languages from all over the world (and Bananas), which now makes sense after the introduction to the film. There are moments where I was begging for subtitles, but for the most part you can tell what the little guys are trying to say. I think its more about the body language and the actions to understand what they are saying, I still love the scene with Stuart and the yellow fire hydrant...."Ello papagena...."

What got the most laughs from me was the British stereotyping. I feel like I should be mildly offended? Like I want to assure people that our policemen do not drink and drive (tea from china cups that is) and we don’t all cry ‘blimey!’ when we’re distressed! We do drink a lot of tea though...I type this whilst drinking tea so it must be true, ha!  I too am drinking tea but not driving at the same time but it does explain why the UK area of Epcot in Florida looks the way it does!

I loved this film (excusing the brief boredom around the middle), but I only ever remotely enjoyed Despicable Me 2 because of these little guys, the rest was a waste of time.  I thought it was as good as Despicable Me and really made me laugh out loud and made my niece squeal with delight (which always makes my day!).

Minions wasn’t as good as good as the original Despicable Me, although the ending made me squeal with glee (I won’t spoil it) and I’d rank it on par with Despicable Me 2. It’s a good film, don’t get me wrong, but I think Minions appeals to a much younger audience.  Maybe I have a lower mental age than you?! 

Review: Birdman (2014)

Birdman had me excited when I very first heard about it, probably 5 months ago at a guess, so I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to get round to watching it! I’m so determined to watch all of the Oscar nominated Best Picture films this year, but this one certainly wasn’t a chore to tick off the list.  I think we are doing pretty well on the Oscars tick list :-)  I wasn't that excited about this to be fair but I should have been, it was much better than I expected!

Riggan Thompson (Michael Keaton) is best known for his role of superhero Birdman, over twenty years ago. The franchise was so popular that you could perhaps say that Birdman himself is more famous than the man behind the mask. Riggan now finds himself trying to reprise his career and get his name back out there, and he does so by writing, directing and starring in a Broadway show. He faces numerous problems in the run up to the opening night, not helped by the voice of Birdman in his head and the strange super powers he seems to have.  

The mood and theme of the whole film is easily summed up in the first five minutes as we see Riggan in his room, seemingly meditating, in mid-air, in his pants. His first line is a complaint about how the room smelt like balls, and well, I’m laughing just from typing it! I find dark comedies very hit and miss at times, but this just hit the spot for me.  It felt very inadvertently funny, like it wasn't trying to be funny but that made you laugh.  Zack Galifianakis made me laugh in every scene he was in, even though I'm not sure he was supposed to.

Really early on I noticed some key similarities between Birdman and Iron Man, the poster in the dressing room was very similar to the Iron Man 3 poster and, I thought Keaton resembled an older version of Robert Downey Jr.  I wondered for the first 30 minutes or so if it was sort of based on RDJ and Iron Man but then it specifically mentioned them in a news story. Admittedly, I was a but disappointed that my theory didn't pan out!

I’m not one to pick up on anything technical when watching films, but I loved the camera work (and editing?) in Birdman. Sure, there are long takes which must have been a pain in the butt for the actors involved, but the entire film looked like one take. If you look for it, you can tell where the breaks are, but it’s just so clever! This is the first film I have seen that has used this technique and i absolutely loved it.  I had read beforehand that it was shot as one long scene so I was really looking out for it, however I needn't have known, it was pretty obvious.  It gave the whole film a realistic feel, you almost felt as if you were there walking through the halls of the theatre.  It was so clever.

It pains me to admit I’ve seen very little of Edward Norton. I saw him last in The Grand Budapest Hotel, and the last film I saw where he had a major role was Fight Club. He’s an absolute legend in Birdman, and I will have a strop at Jenna’s if he doesn't win Best Supporting Actor. His character, Mike, makes you hate him and then love him within minutes of each other, and he’s got such a charm about him. I’m already jotting down his filmography… I however am a huge fan of Edward Norton ever since first seeing him in American History X, his character was truly evil in that but he played perfectly.  I think i have seen a fair bit of his work so far, but a quick check of the filmography may prove me wrong.

Speaking of Oscars...can Emma Stone have one too? YES YES YES!!! You already know how much I love her, but she really packs a punch in this. She’s so expressive! Heck, you might have already seen my tweet but just throw all the Oscars at Birdman. I’m sure I’ll change my mind again once I’ve seen some of the other Best Picture nominated films, but this is going to be one of my all time favourites.  I have yet to see all the films on the Best Picture list, but this is coming up pretty high on the list so far, I personally don't think Keaton will have a look in for Best Actor with Mr Redmayne in running, sorry but we all know it's true.

I like to keep reviews spoiler free so I’ll be brief here, but that ending! Can someone please invite me for coffee (I’ll have a green tea though thanks) so we can sit and talk about it for like, an hour? I already have 3 theories floating around in my head!  I think we need to discuss this because I have NO IDEA what to think!!