Sorry... I'm a vegetarian!
AICN-DOWNUNDER
Heya Lat.
Just returned from the BIFF [Brisbane International Film Festival] screening of Mysterious Skin. I don't have anything to add, just to support this film. I'm not one to say whether this film is an important one or not... the fact that it deals with a controvercial subject matter and deals with it in a way that is tasteful and makes you think puts it above all the crap out there today. It's extremely harrowing to watch. I hope that I didn't watch the final legal performance.
Time Dude
As you may remember, society collapsed midway through this year when Michael Winterbottom's 9 SONGS was released. Audience members who watched the unsimulated acts of sexual relations immediately rushed home to see if they, too, could perform such acts. Children, who much preferred to see a semi-surrealistic depiction of a couple's relationship as depicted through the recollections of a man travelling to Antarctica to, say, a cartoon about crime-fighting robots, begun experimenting in playgrounds across the country. "I wanna do the oral sex they did in the hotel room before the Michael Nyman concert!" "No way! The Von Bondies lay was so much better!" Innocence was lost, and a nation crumbled.
This, of course, didn't happen. While I, myself, really enjoyed Winterbottom's film, most people found it to be a pompous, dragging bore. Most people being, of course, film critics and the handful of self-important Brunswick Street residents who actually watched the thing.
The Australian Family Association (which was behind the attempted 9 SONGS ban) is back, this time aiming their self-righteous indignation at Gregg Araki's MYSTERIOUS SKIN. The film, which has now played twice at the currently-in-progress Melbourne International Film Festival, follows the experiences of two boys who are sexually abused by their baseball coach. The AFA's complaint? That the film acts as a "how to" manual for paedophiles.
I'll come back to that point in a minute.
When I heard about this, the first thing I did was jump online and pick up a ticket for SKIN. MIFF was kind enough to send me a free mini-pass, and with one film improbably left on my ticket, this seemed important. After all, I planned to speak on this issue, and unlike the AFA I prefer to see films before passing judgement on them. Unless, of course, it's ARE WE THERE YET?.
Greg Araki had to fly back to LA and was unable to speak to us (as was promised in the program), but a representative from MIFF gave some brief words and welcomed the Family First political party (who were no doubt there to enjoy the film itself). For those who don't remember, a Family First member famously proclaimed that "lesbians should be burned at the stake" during last year's federal election. Good to see they've got a clear handle on all the issues.
My review of the film can be found in AICN-D's forthcoming MIFF coverage, but I'll say now that the AFA's claim is laughable. MYSTERIOUS SKIN is no more an instruction manual for paedophiles than ROMEO + JULIET is a DIY guide for suicide.
Films like MYSTERIOUS SKIN are important. Art's most important function is to further us as a society, open us up to new ideas and parts of the world we hadn't yet considered. Just like THE WOODSMAN explored the mind of a paedophile, SKIN explores the mind of the paedophile victim. It provokes debate and discussion. If we pretend these things aren't happening, then all that happens is they continue in the shadows.
The AFA contacted its usual marionette, South Australian Attorney-General Michael Atkinson, who then contacted Federal Attorney-General Phillip Ruddock. I'm not the biggest Ruddock fan in the world, but to his credit even he looked weary when he admitted that he's bound to investigate all complaints the state and territory A-Gs bring to him.
Well, after a twelve hour meeting this Monday past, the Classification Review Board announced that MYSTERIOUS SKIN is cleared for release with an R18+ rating (for "High Level Sexual Abuse Themes, High Level Sexual Violence, and Paedophile Themes"). The AFA's vain attempt to drum itself up some publicity did not result in an important film being banned from our screens; T
ime Dude, thankfully, did not see the last legal performance.
NEWS
* Okay, this should be interesting... Scooper "Lee" (no, not me) has sent
through a bunch of information on a film called TWO FISTS ONE HEART. The
film is the brainchild of Perth Gym owner Rai Fazio, who plans to produce
and star in the film, and came very close to getting its funding from
WA-based Screen West. Lee: "Rai has been allegedly linked to organised crime
in Perth and Screen West dropped funding thinking that his modest producer,
actor salary of 170k (I think) would be seen as them funding organised
crime." Some brief parliamentary confirmation of the film's funding
withdrawal can be found here:
australian parliament
Now, that exchange took place just over a month ago. With some further
digging, Lee found this link:
film.vic.gov.au
which shows that Jan Sardi was attached as writer as of December 2003 when
Film Victoria granted it over $30 000 in script development money. Very
curious to see what becomes of this project... Big thanks to "Lee".
* It's a good thing Rusty Crowe ignored the judge's suggestion, and continued picking up his phone: Sir Ridley called, requesting his grunting talents for A GOOD YEAR. Adapted from a novel by Peter Mayle, Russ will play a London banker who loses his job and inherits a vineyard. Provided no one commits any felonies before then, cameras will roll in September around the Parisian regions.
* Meanwhile, Crowe's EUCALYPTUS co-star that wasn't, Our Nic is taking the lead role in INVASION. Another remake of INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS, Nic will take direction from DAS EXPERIMENT helmer Oliver Hirschbiegel (although wouldn't it be cool if he gave that direction by pointing and screaming until she did what he wanted?). Exposure happens this October in the shire of Baltimore.
* There's a rumour - and apologies to whoever broke it, I've completely forgotten where it came from - that STAR TREK XI will shoot in South Australia. While there's no info about what the film will be (other than the likelihood that it will be the first TREK film to cast its crew from scratch), all signs point to prequel. Seriously, at some point Amnesty needs to step in and stop what's happening to TREK. I'll even help decorate Rick Berman's room at the Hague, if you like.
* Mick Molloy, who starred in the excellent BAD EGGS and the mediocre CRACKERJACK, will next be seen in BOYTOWN. Molloy, who scripted the film with his brother Richard, will play a faded 80s rock star attempting to make a comeback. Filming begins in Melbourne later this year.
* AICN-D's favourite scooper "Lennox" heard an item about Australian country crooner Keith Urban nabbing a deal with Paramount to play in two of the Mount's films: one, to play opposite Brad Pitt in that Jesse James movie; the second to possibly play Kris Kristofferson in a biopic. Can't wait to see who plays Wesley Snipes when they get to the BLADE era of his career.
* "Brad" had a piece about a NSW music mag "Volume", which he claims had an interview with Marvel Captain Avi Arad (not to be confused with Captain Marvel, who may or may not be Avi Arad). There was confirmation by the man himself that DAREDEVIL 2 is going ahead. Provided, of course, that Affleck has the time in his schedule.
* "The Ex" sent in a bit of info about a low budget horror film called VOODOO LAGOON, which apparently started filming in Queensland sometime last week. Written and directed by Nick Cohen (who wrote an episode of "24"), the film will star Brit Ashley Hamilton, whose biggest claim to fame seems to be that he was once married to Shannen Doherty (but seriously, who hasn't?).
* Eric Bana will follow up his Spielberging with an Australian film, ROMULUS, MY FATHER. Based on the Raimond Gaiti novel, the film will be directed by thin-lipped thesp Richard Roxburgh.
* Mark Mitchell (yes, THAT Mark Mitchell) has joined Disney's CHICKEN LITTLE. According to Dark Horizons, Mitchell will play Buck Cluck, father of Zach Braff's Chicken Little. Mitchell has been a bit off-the-radar for the last few years, so this a coup for him. Don't expect similar news for Steve Vizard...
* SOLO, the Project Greenlight Australia film that has received a decent amount of press in this column, has grabbed another actor. Moviehole says that the ubiquitous Vince Colosimo will join Colin Friels and others in the film from winner Morgan O'Neill.
* Disney has shut down its Sydney-based animation studios in Castlereagh Street, Sydney. Once the production of BAMBI II, BROTHER BEAR 2 and CINDERELLA III are completed (seriously, guys, get on your knees and *beg* Pixar to come back), DisneyToon Studios Australia will be no more. The significance? It's Disney's last hand-drawn animation studio anywhere in the world. The Mouse will axe the two hundred and fifty jobs halfway through 2006.
AWARDS AND FESTIVALS
14TH BRISBANE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
BIFF awarded the 2005 Chauvel Award to documentary film producer David Bradbury. Bradbury is known for such films as BRIDGE OVER RIVER BRUNS, and is considered one of the country's most important documentarians.
MELBOURNE UNDERGROUND FILM FESTIVAL
GRIM, the short from WHY WE HAD TO KILL BITCH director JP Nickel, tied with CLOWN for Best Short Film at this year's ceremony.
30TH TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
The Cate Blanchett film LITTLE FISH, which recently premiered at the opening night of the Melbourne International Film Festival, will take place in the Special Presentations showcase in the Canadian festival later this year.
62ND VENICE INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
THE MECHANICS, an eight minute drama, will screen in the competitive short film section at Venice this year. The film was written and directed by Leon Ford, and produced by Nicole O'Donohue.
BOX OFFICE
The Box Office takings all move down a notch from last week, with BEWITCHED getting pushed out of the top five, and THE ISLAND mercifully knocking MONSTER-IN-LAW off top position. At least DreamWorks can proudly place on THE ISLAND DVD cover: "#1 IN AUSTRALIA!!!".
1. THE ISLAND
2. MONSTER-IN-LAW
2. FANTASTIC FOUR
4. SIN CITY
5. WAR OF THE WORLDS
RELEASED THESE PAST THREE WEEKS
Michael Winterbottom does chastity, Dennis Quaid does a really good Han Solo, Ewan Macgregor does a *really* good Scarlett Johannsen, Isabelle Huppert does Freedom comedy, Rory Culkin does anti-HOME ALONE, Romero does political zombies, Daniel Craig does bad drugs, Germany does the World Cup, and Jane Fonda does a batch of formaldehyde.
CODE 46
FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX
THE ISLAND
ME AND MY SISTER
MEAN CREEK
LAND OF THE DEAD
LAYER CAKE
THE MIRACLE OF BERN
MONSTER-IN-LAW
REVIEWS
CINDERELLA MAN
In what is sure to be the prominent talkback topic (although I'm always off when predicting them), I should say that I consider A BEAUTIFUL MIND to be one of the worst films I've ever seen. What, worse than CATWOMAN? Worse than PHANTOM MENACE? Worse than some of the crappy indie films that appear in the mail? Oh, yes. Much worse. It offended me in many ways: the Hollywoodised version of mental illness; the fabricated story and characters used to give a superficial "glimpse" into the man's mind; the pat, clichéd, clunky script. While I'd vaguely disliked Akiva Goldsman's scripts in the past, MIND really cemented him (for me, at least) as the worst writer ever.
It was therefore with trepidation that I tiptoed into CINDERELLA MAN. I mean, I like Ron Howard. How can you not? Everything he's created has been enjoyable, be it APOLLO 13, Richie Cunningham or Bryce Dallas-Howard.
The biggest shock of the film was that the script didn't suck. It wasn't brilliant; it glossed over some curious details and seemed to be painfully self-conscious of how many underdog-makes-good stories have come before, but on the whole it was serviceable. Only occasional moments of suckage. I was impressed. Wow, thought I, Akiva's on the improvement! This is the least worst script he's ever written! I'd even consider it "good"! Of course, that was before I saw the credits and discovered that Akiva had only script doctored it, and the majority was by some guy called Cliff Hollingsworth.
The story itself, which actually inspired ROCKY, is a pretty good one. Crowe plays Braddock, from his initial success to his depression-era poverty to his comeback. Crowe does a pretty good job, although there's not a lot of distance between his Jim Braddock and his Bud White, or even his Jack Aubrey. The big difference seems to be his determination to play Braddock as a nice, genial, selfless bloke, but his attempts at this make it seem as if "nice and genial" is something he once saw on TV. It makes him feel like Movie Good Guy rather than Actual Human Being, and it's that fact that destroys any sense of historical accuracy the film seems, in an off-hand way, to want.
Zellweger is pretty good as Mrs Braddock, and only just has a bit more to do than the usual wifey stuff. Every now and then she gets a meaty scene, and, regardless of the criticisms she usually gets, Zellweger plays these terrifically. Of course, her range isn't much more than Crowe's, but she provides a good foil to him, and they manage to produce some pretty good chemistry.
The highlight is, unsurprisingly, Paul Giamatti as Braddock's manager. Giamatti's been going from strength to strength lately, and his performances usually lift the standard of any film he's involved with. Case in point is CINDERELLA MAN. Most of the time I found myself waiting for his next appearance. Luckily, they weren't too far apart.
The most perplexing part of the film has to be the inclusion of the Dark Lord Satan, or, as the film refers to him, "Max Baer". Here's Baer killing a man in the ring! Here's Baer gloating over it later! Here's Baer in a hotel room with *two* girls, and he even yells at them! Oh, there he is gloating over the fact that he's going to kill Braddock, then "comfort" his widow! Wow, this guy's an arsehole! I don't claim to be the world expert on Baer, but the accounts I've heard suggest he was a relatively nice man who was haunted to the end of his days by the accidental deaths he'd caused in the ring. The depiction of him in CINDERELLA MAN is irresponsible, petty, and drags the film far away from any semblance of believability or integrity it may have otherwise had. The pathetic need for a super-villain is the film's biggest shortcoming, and Howard really should have known better.
The other big non-Giamatti highlight is the score by Thomas Newman. I consider Newman to be the best composer working today, and the legion of imitators he's inadvertently created is a testament to that. I didn't know, going in, that he'd scored CINDERELLA MAN, but picked it within a few short notes. It's a terrific score that's reminiscent of his best work; that in ROAD TO PERDITION, which also drew upon early 20th Century and Gaelic influences.
Truth is, it's not a bad film. It's not a bad film in the way that BEAUTIFUL MIND was, at any rate. It's serviceable, fairly enjoyable, and features a predictably uplifting ending that, whilst schmaltzy, does do a good job at paying off its characters' journeys.
NEXT WEEK
- Disney begins production on a film about a small town whose quirky residents are in no way affected by a pet dog in DESPITE WINN-DIXIE
- Due to a typing error, The Rock signs on to play the supreme ruler of Mount Olympus who decides to write children's books in the biopic DR ZEUS
- Oliver Stone bows to critics, and promises to remove all 9/11 references from the DVD edition of his upcoming film, UNTITLED OLIVER STONE/SEPTEMBER 11 PROJECT
