by Philip Benais

Bloodz vs. Wolvez: Directed by Z. Winston Brown; Malik Burke, Richard Carroll Jr. and Kandiss Marie.

Ladies and gentlemen, I don’t quite know how to convey what I feel about Bloodz Vs. Wolvez. I could easily discuss the provocative symbolism that puts Tarkovsky to shame. I could discuss how a film greater than even Citizen Kane or Casablanca managed to elude the presence of the so called ‘Academy’. I could discuss how no other auteur has illuminated the human condition better than Z. Winston Brown in the history of film…but that is not what I’ll talk about. Instead, I will demonstrate the preposterous assault on this perfect film by underprivileged rubes, who dare not be mentioned in the same sentence as a line of dialogue from this masterpiece. The filthy charlatans that snicker and sneer at what they could never comprehend or hope to accomplish. The blasphemous thieves that have pilfered sacred, nay, ANGELIC elements of this gift from a gracious God.

As many of these heathens will say, the film is poorly structured, laughably acted and plotted worse than an episode of Jersey Shore. LIES; monstrous concoctions of feeble intellects grasping for relevance in a world that has passed them by. The opening narration itself is a testament to the act of creation. No doubt while working on ‘Kinky Kong’ Brown was struck with the revelation of every great artist, promptly authoring narration that any mongoloid could give to Morgan Freeman. No, this brave, gentle soul chose instead to have the narration very difficult to hear and the actor unlisted. Think of the parallels in history, the greatest minds of the world snuffed into insignificance by tyrants. Hence, Brown has already given us a work filled with the passionate heartbeat of every oppressed soul throughout history. Oh, but it doesn’t stop there. The scene which follows gives us the character of Unnamed Real Estate Agent #1. The lack of any defining characteristics allows this actor (who must have been classically trained) to morph within the scenery and as such become the film. In a sense, the seemingly insignificant Mike Tyson sound alike has personified an audience disillusioned with 3-D and Michael Bay, the parlor tricks of soulless elite to inflict on its serfs.

The rest of the film presents moral dilemmas and dramatic tension the world itself is not ready for. On the surface, you could say the plot is nothing more than poor vs. rich, Palestinian vs. Israeli etc. but as we all know from cooking soup, scum sits on the surface. The true breadth and width of this wonder is realizing the culmination of every possible majesty this space rock has to offer us. That culmination is what some have dubbed the ‘Imma shit on yo newspaper’ scene, which so described is almost as if you were offered the chance to gaze into the wonders of the infinite and instead chose to do Mad Libs. What these loathsome creatures fail to realize is that the newspaper scene, however brief you may want to chastise it for being, emanates with the vitality of pure, unbridled love. The newspaper represents the faceless, heartless terror that every human being must conquer to realize their potential in a depraved world. The feces represents the rejection of oppression and thus the dawn of revolution, ushering in an age of enlightenment and utopia. Cujo’s facial expressions recognize the soul deadening monotony of everyday life as a figment of the giant tortoise’s imagination that we are all just dreams experiencing each other over and over and over, until eventually we must awaken to our death.

I cannot recommend the life changing experience of Bloodz. Vs. Wolvez anymore than I could recommend being alive. While it ended I was sucked into the vortex of holiness, and I knew then and there that I must devote myself to spreading the gospel of its nirvana. In the name of the cat noises, the sausage links and the holy newspaper, amen.

RATING: ****** / *****

[Armond White, eat your heart out. I’d like to thank all of my haters, without which none of this would have been possible. Keep up the great work letting ruffians like myself know how the cow ate the cabbage while your miserable lives crawl on without me.]

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is was one of our Interns, a 17-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

Atlas Shrugged Part 1: Directed by Paul Johansson; Starring Taylor Schilling, Grant Bowler, Matthew Mardsen, Graham Beckel and Jsu Garcia.

I informally promised myself when I started writing for The B-Town Blog that I wouldn’t let politics and my reviewing mix, especially since I’m not exactly a conservative or liberal…at least in the modern sense of the terms. However when a film as brilliant and thought provoking as Atlas Shrugged comes along, that thin balance becomes ever smaller. If you haven’t seen Atlas Shrugged, or weren’t even aware that a series of film adaptations had been started based on Ayn Rand’s classic novel, you owe it to yourself to see this film. Despite the amateurish smear job of various Hollywood aficionados and the critics who routinely suck up to them, the two sequels are in the works and more people are becoming receptive to the ideas of individualism and liberty. It all speaks to the power of the source material and indeed the brilliant adaptation that I once thought would be impossible to film. This film is without a doubt the best I’ll see all year, if for no other reason than no film will floor me like this in a long time.

The story of Atlas Shrugged is a classic albeit somewhat long-winded tale that should be familiar to most people who are well read. The film modifies several aspects of the story to make them more tenable and relevant for a modern film. As the film starts for instance, we learn that the year is 2016. In the midst of a inflationary depression and continuing to perpetuate an imperialist foreign policy, the United States turns to political bureaucrats to save them. However, the politicians are merely shills for a corporatist scheme that is ruining the lives of every citizen. Gasoline has reached 37.50 a gallon and so trains become the only means of viable transport and travel. It is the wake of a horrific train accident that we’re introduced to Dagny Taggart and her corrupt brother James, heads of Taggart Transcontinental. Dagny is the sole voice of reason in a company that has long since given in to monopolism and political favors. To save the dying company, Dagny begins a business partnership with Hank Rearden, a thriving industrial titan bogged down by slanderous competitors and lecherous friends and family. As Hank and Dagny struggle to do what is needed, the top minds of industry begin to disappear around them. In the end, the only question that remains is, “Who is John Galt?”

It becomes apparent very quickly in the opening that certain people will be diametrically opposed to everything the film has to offer. Ayn Rand was a very polarizing individual, even amongst people who can appreciate her. The fundamental flaw in her writing was creating characters that were essentially talking heads for Objectivism, which in itself is pretty cognitively dissonant, even for a laissez-faireist like myself. The beauty of this film is that it takes the central characters of her novel and breathes life into them. No longer can you take a character from the story and say ‘he/she is too one dimensional to appreciate’. This is in part due to the actors they hired for the parts, who are talented enough to make you see them as the character they play whether you want to or not, and in part due to the writing. Much like the novel, Atlas Shrugged the film serves as a great intro to the ideas of liberty, for those who are willing to listen. In this way, the film becomes more of an experience than a straightforward motion picture. Thanks to the brilliant creative team, (the actors like Taylor Schilling, Jsu Garcia and Grant Bowler, director Paul Johansson etc.) Atlas Shrugged Part 1 becomes an instant classic, and the closest thing us libertarians have to both an accessible cinematic intro and a delight for hardened veterans. As I sat in the theater with people who didn’t really understand what was going on, I could tell that this film was going to be one of my new favorites. Like any great film, Atlas Shrugged has the power to make you fully involved in what’s happening and never want it to end. With each passing moment, I found scenes that made me run the gamut of emotions. I laughed when Dagny told the union official to stick his ultimatum where the sun doesn’t shine. I was furious with the parasites at the dinner meeting of James Taggart, the Steel Union head and Mouch, who becomes one of the most easily hated characters in recent cinematic history. Most importantly, I was enthralled the whole way through, from the riveting opening to the wonderful ending that left me craving more. Regardless of your political or philosophical inclination, I have a feeling that this film will be talked about quite extensively by a great deal of people. I estimate most will say it’s a film for cranks and selfish monsters, but those of us who know better will rejoice in the fact that a film has finally come that disregards slanders and half developed criticisms to give people something they should take note of and maybe even listen to.

In the end, if you’re looking for a film that will raise as many questions as answers, will challenge you to think critically and will be one of the most rewarding experiences you have in a cinema this year, stop reading and go support these talented individuals with your money and time. Don’t let slander get in the way of enjoying what is possibly one of the most important films of the modern era, and whatever you may think after seeing it, just be sure to make up your own mind. That is after all, the point.

Rating: ***** / *****

VIDEOS:

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[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

Red Riding Hood; Directed By Catherine Hardwicke: Starring Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Shiloh Fernandez, Virginia Madsen, Julie Christie and Max Irons.

Being a legitimate cinema lover is a tough act to follow sometimes; for every 2001: A Space Odyssey or Solyaris, a new kind of entertainment rears its head in the form of Pierre Kirby and Reb Brown style exploitation films. While technically some of the worst films ever made, these trashy gems provide hours upon hours of laughter and enjoyment. There is of course, another strain of terrible films. The kind of derivative hogwash that fancies itself as something more. Twilight has been the reigning champ of this sort of film ever since the atrocious ‘novels’ were adapted by a director known primarily for retelling the story of Jesus Christ’s birth. Indeed, many brain dead tweens have adopted The Twilight Saga as their gospel on romantic fiction. I am neither twelve years old nor mentally challenged so naturally I view Twilight as an embarrassment to vampires, werewolves and romance. When you’ve seen Casablanca (in my mind the greatest romance film of all time) mopey valley girls and vacuous pretty boys who sparkle just don’t have the same effect as on someone with no knowledge of culture or taste. Lo and behold in 2011 Catherine Hardwicke has chosen to revert back to the hellish formula that made her so successful, only this time also bastardizing a classic fable of everyone’s childhood. Of course, I’m sugarcoating it right now; Red Riding Hood is not only a prime example of everything wrong with films today, but also one of the worst adaptations and love stories of all time. If there is a film worse than Red Riding Hood this year, I will officially give up hope for the film industry. To reach this level of abject misery takes a certain anti-talent, the likes of which M. Night Shyamalan is ridiculed for these days. Move over M. Night, there’s a new queen of bad films in town.

The story (as plagiarized from Stephanie Meyer of all people) follows Valerie, the not quite Bella Swan who falls in love with Edward Cullen and Joaquin Phoenix’s love child. They live in a village terrorized by a dog (er, ‘werewolf’) whose villagers have grown accustomed to sacrificing livestock every full moon. Valerie’s sister is then killed after speaking no lines of dialogue and eventually an outsider is brought in to deal with the problem. Enter Gary Oldman, a tough as nails inquisition type with one of the most entertaining two dollar accents this side of Nicolas Cage in Con Air. As all of the ‘wolf’ hysteria continues Valerie has to choose between the man she loves and the man her family wants her to marry, even though they’re both doe-eyed simpletons without an ounce of humanity. Will the villagers fend off the beast? Will Valerie find true love? Will Gary Oldman finally tell us which accent he’s butchering? All of these questions and more are shoddily answered in a film that runs for an eternity.

Let’s dive right into the root of the problem with this ‘love story’; most importantly how it is NOT a love story. When the best Hollywood screenwriters can do is present sloppy, two dimensional and unforgivingly boring characters that presents a quandary. In a love story the idea is to present two characters drawn together or torn apart by an emotion they grow to understand through conflicts and joys alike. When the only set up you have is that some delirious bimbo has to choose between two hunks of interchangeable meat that spout cliched lines, all you hope for is that the boys get killed and the girl finds a nice companion of the same sex. THAT would make things slightly interesting, but instead we’re stuck with the shameless retreading of the Twilight nonsense, so much so that I was expecting Shiloh Fernandez to mess up a line and call Amanda Seyfried ‘Bella’. At least then the film would have been honest with itself as a cheap cash in, as opposed to a darker take on a classic story like what Alan Moore did with Lost Girls (which would make a great film by the way).

Furthermore, the beast in the film is not a werewolf. It’s a dog who was injected with one too many steroids. It would be better to combat it with a bone and repeating the words ‘Bad Fido’. When the romance and the monster both blow chunks in your tween mental masturbation, it’s time to consider some other genre of film. There is laughter to be had whenever Gary Oldman is chewing the scenery, but between the destruction of the source material and the horrendous reference to Three Little Pigs (spin off bait?) amongst all the other atrocities Red Riding Hood is not worth your time, money or thought. After you read this, forget everything you know about this trainwreck. Do yourself a favor; stay home, rent Casablanca and enjoy a true classic. Gary Oldman may have given this film a half star rating, but the real question is not about this ‘film’. It’s a question about Gary Oldman; from Bram Stoker’s Dracula to Red Riding Hood, who knows what the future holds for one of my favorite actors? Everyone else might as well quit now or forever be doomed to a purgatory of Twilight rip offs.

Rating: ½ / *****

VIDEOS:

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[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

West; Directed By Alan Wilkie: Starring Eric Hartley, Adrienne Grieco, David Roby, Amber Rack, Doug Knoop, Stephen R. Scheide, Erika Zabelle and Nancy Warren. Written by T.M. Sell. Music by Nancy Warren.

In my time as a critic, it seems certain patterns have emerged more distinctly than others. So when I was commissioned to see West at Breeders Theater I decided to follow my usual pattern of not researching the play before I saw it. So far, this pattern has led to many pleasant surprises but I think West may be among the most pleasant of the bunch. Right off the success of Casting Call, the cast and crew of Breeders Theater strikes gold again with a production that’s at once a throwback to classic Hollywood romance stories of the 30’s – 50’s and a new entry in the genre; except as a play.

The story follows the tale of two families, the Olsons and the Dokkens whose lives are more connected than they first seem. Olie Olson (Eric Hartley) is the head of a farming family, having immigrated to America at the height of homesteading with nothing but an extra shirt. Harald Dokken (Doug Knoop) is a banker, a steadfast man who believes in hard work and discipline. On one fateful day, Glenda Olson (Adrienne Grieco) and George Dokken (David Roby), meet. What at first seems like annoyance at first sight blossoms into something they never though possible. Throughout the course of the play we follow George and Glenda as they succeed and fail, struggle and sacrifice, all in a story that has as many laughs as it does genuine drama. This is a story that will warm your heart and tug at your heart strings, but most importantly, it’ll make you want to sing half as well as the actors do.

The most striking aspect of West is how well all of the individual parts combine into a whole; the wonderful music, the terrific performances, the stellar writing all combined to form something that is nostalgic but level headed, sentimental but grounded in reality. It’s crucial spiritual nourishment for the inner romantic in all of us and by the end, I guarantee you’ll want more. It’s not just that the characters are fully realized by great actors who obviously care about the audience. It’s not just that the music will have you stirring in your seat and humming the tunes the morning after. It’s not just that the writing has shades of some of the greatest romance stories of all time. It’s ultimately how all of these elements manage to be as great as you’d think and so much more. West gets my highest recommendation. If you’re looking for a romantic evening out at the theater or just feel like you could use a real love story and not the nonsense they’re peddling today try heading to a showing of West. You’ll love every minute of it.

Breeders Theater’s “West” opens at 7pm this Friday night, March 11th at E.B. Foote Winery, located at 127B SW 153rd St., Burien, and continues through:

• Saturday, March 12
• Sunday, March 13 (2 p.m.)
• Wednesday, March 16
• Thursday, March 17
• Friday, March 18
• Saturday, March 19
• Sunday, March 20 (2 p.m.)
• Wednesday, March 23
• Thursday, March 24
• Friday, March 25
• Saturday, March 26

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and showtime is at 7 p.m.

Sunday matinees are March 13 and 20, with doors open at 1:30 p.m. and showtime at 2 p.m.

Tickets are $20 (includes wine tasting), and are available at the winery, 206-242-3852, and at Corky Cellars, 22511 Marine View Drive, Des Moines, 206-824-9462. Cash or check only. For more information on tickets, click here.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

The Green Hornet; Directed by Michel Gondry; Starring Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz, Tom Wilkinson and Cameron Diaz.

Sometimes a superhero film doesn’t need to challenge our perceptions of right and wrong. Sometimes a superhero film doesn’t have to present a gritty crime caper with aspirations of Shakespeare. Sometimes, you just want to see something hilarious with lots of explosions. Green Hornet is that kind of film, a light and yet subtly made parody of the serious superhero film we’ve come to expect with the advent of the Nolanverse Batman and Zack Snyder’s Watchmen. If you’re expecting drama and nihilistic villains you need to look somewhere else. From the earliest previews I knew I would like Green Hornet, but I didn’t know that I would love it and that this dreadfully underrated gem would broach my favorite comic book films of all time. Simply put, Green Hornet is the perfect superhero comedy, a feat that has been attempted in the past but never managed to go beyond corny nostalgia. With this film, Michel Gondry has proven himself to be an auteur with a sense of humor, able to make compelling dramas but also step back and give us a fantastic action comedy, and more importantly a bang to start off the new year.

Green Hornet follows the story of Britt Reid (Seth Rogen), a reckless, fun loving playboy and son of the famous James Reid (Tom Wilkinson), newspaper mogul and publisher of The Daily Sentinel. Britt and his father have never seen eye to eye, but when James is found dead of an allergic reaction to a bee sting, Britt secludes himself. Eventually he meets Kato (Jay Chou) his father’s former mechanic and all-around human Swiss army knife. After some heavy drinking, Britt and Kato decide to head out on the town and commit a little vandalism. However, what starts as a childish prank quickly becomes a rescue and soon Britt has an idea; what if he and Kato became superheros? Disguised as villains, they could infiltrate the criminal underworld headed up by Chudnofsky (the brilliant Christoph Waltz) and rid the city of its’ scourge. Will Green Hornet succeed? How does lovely Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz) fit into this? Of course, my favorite question, why did the critical consensus for this film reek of snobbery?

Right off the bat, I was dismayed by the polarizing response that Green Hornet received from other critics, but when I saw it I didn’t see the horrible film they claimed it was, I saw a film that people really just didn’t know what to do with. How many superhero comedies exist? Not very many. What’s been the usual critical consensus for them? Hatred. Sure, it’s fine if superheros deal with rape and torture but the minute Gangster’s Paradise starts playing with Seth Rogen and Jay Chou singing along it’s a terrible film. What struck me even more is that even if we accept that Green Hornet failed at what it attempts to do, it was made in such a way that it not only makes fun of itself at every turn, but pokes fun of every other superhero cliche throughout the years.

Let’s be honest, Seth Rogen is not a superhero…but that’s what makes it so grand! Never in a million years would I have imagined him as an action star and a worthwhile character but lo and behold, he pulls it off. How about Christoph Waltz as the villain whose only gimmick is that he’s in search of a gimmick? Or Cameron Diaz as the seemingly usual female character who doesn’t end up with either of the main characters and by the end is irritated beyond all belief? These are ideas that most superhero films look over but Green Hornet has the capacity to take these ideas and not only be funny at face value but also be funny as a deftly made, possibly unintentional satire.

Jay Chou steals the show as Kato though, providing us with great laughs and incredible action sequences thanks to his martial arts skills and ‘Kato Vision’. The writing for the film feels like every superhero film and no superhero film simultaneously, a feat that only dumb luck could have accomplished. All of these elements combined with Michel Gondry’s distinctive visual style provide a great time at the movies. Maybe the fact that that’s all I expected from this film helped me enjoy it a lot more. Maybe since professional critics need to seem like legitimate cinema lovers they shun films like this for credibility. In the end though, this film gets my highest recommendation. Not in a high art sense, but in the same way I would recommend the original Highlander or Boondock Saints. It might be corny at times but Green Hornet backs it up with laughs, action and genuine entertainment. See it, love it, talk about it.

Rating: ***** / *****

VIDEOS:

Click here to view the embedded video.

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[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

Season Of The Witch; Directed By Dominic Sena: Starring Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman and Claire Foy.

The story of Nicolas Cage’s career is certainly a tragic one; how he managed to go from Academy Award Winner to straight to DVD-quality schlock like this is a sob story for the ages. The turning point for me ultimately came in 2006, from Neil LaBute’s god awful Wicker Man remake. As atrocious as that film was, Nicolas Cage managed to cement himself in bad movie history. Along with John Travolta in Battlefield Earth and Eddie Murphy in Pluto Nash, Cage became one of the biggest laughing stocks in show business. To this day, the mere mention of ‘Not The Bees!’ has me keeling over in laughter. Naturally when Season Of The Witch came out, I was expecting another heavy hitting bad film. Since Cage has proven he’s diametrically opposed to acting in anything worthwhile these days, the least he could do is try and make the horrible films memorable.

Sadly, Season Of The Witch was no such film. Don’t get me wrong, it was still horrid but in the same fashion as the mind-boggling sequel Little Fockers. It’s made up of so much concentrated garbage that it collapses in on itself into a vast empty void of nothingness. Season Of The Witch isn’t a bad film you laugh at or even cringe at. When I sat in the theater I didn’t know how to express why the film was so bad. It has all the elements of a very bad film like third rate CGI, predictable plot twists, horrible quips etc. but none of the emotional resonance that other terrible films have. When you see a movie like Freddy Got Fingered for instance, the only sane response is to curse humanity for unleashing a foul plague like Tom Green, but in Season Of The Witch, you’re more likely to walk out saying ‘I don’t know what I just watched but somehow I feel very uneasy.’

Season Of The Witch follows two knights in The Crusades named Behmen and Felson (Nicolas Cage and Ron Perlman respectively) who desert their ranks after the slaughter of innocents. Some time later, they hitch at a nearby town that’s been stricken with the plague. Ultimately, they are conscripted into bringing a witch suspected of bringing about the plague to a monastery for trial. However, they soon discover that all is not as it seems as malevolent forces beyond their comprehension begin to move against them.

As much as this film was a true representation of the January Dead Zone, I did enjoy two aspects of it. The first being Ron Perlman; no matter what terrible film he finds himself in, I can always enjoy his cromagnum charm. The second being the very beautiful woman they found to play the witch in Claire Foy. Seeing her somehow ratcheted this film up a notch than it wouldn’t have been without her. Everything else on the other hand? Miserable, and when you think about it later you realize that throwing twenty dollars down the toilet would have been both a more productive use of your time and a better way to spend the money. The special effects are like a time capsule from 1999 that the director had no other use for. Then again this is the brilliant auteur that brought us such ‘classics’ as Swordfish and Gone In Sixty Seconds, both films made slightly better by beautiful women. (I sense a pattern…)

The script is essentially scratch and sniff Medieval fare with a twist of the Schwarzenegger vehicle End Of Days. This is a cliche film and it doesn’t care who knows it. Sometimes I don’t mind that if they know how to play that angle to their advantage and make entertaining B-quality fare, but in the hands of Dominic Sena and Nicolas Cage, it just becomes this year’s equivalent to Jonah Hex; short, unpleasant, haphazard and horrible beyond any kind of connection. My advice if you’re in the mood for a B-Movie is to rent something with Bruce Campbell in it. It won’t be the best film you’ve ever seen, but by golly will it be fun. If you’re looking for Season Of The Witch, stick to the Donovan tune and let Nicolas Cage fizzle out. It’s sad, but then again if I sealed my fate as an actor with paganism and misogyny, I’d have no one but myself to blame.

Rating: * / *****

VIDEOS:

Click here to view the embedded video.

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[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

True Grit; Directed by Joel & Ethan Coen: Starring Jeff Bridges, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Hailee Steinfeld and Barry Pepper.

The Coen Brothers have directed some of the most influential films of modern cinema and regardless of what you may think of any individual film of theirs it quickly becomes apparent they are a force to be reckoned with. Naturally when I saw the previews for True Grit, I was very excited. After all, The Coen Brothers are responsible for one of my Top Ten Favorite Films Of All Time. (The Big Lebowski, which becomes even funnier when you know that I am an ordained Dudeist Priest) The question then becomes, how does True Grit hold up? I’m happy to report that even as their most streamlined picture, it maintains the quirky humor and razor sharp dialogue they became famous for as well as giving us wonderful acting all across the board.

The film centers around Mattie Ross, (Hailee Steinfeld) a 14-year old girl whose father was murdered by a drifter named Tom Cheney. In order to get the justice she seeks for her father, she employs Deputy U.S. Marshall Rooster Cogburn. (Jeff Bridges) Cogburn is described to Mattie as having ‘true grit’, but when she attempts to hire him, he refuses. After much deliberation however, he concedes and Mattie, Cogburn and a Texas Ranger named LaBoeuf (Matt Damon) set out to apprehend Cheney. (Josh Brolin)

The best part of True Grit by far is the emphasis on dialogue. In an age where character and story have become expendable, it’s so welcoming to see talented actors and actresses making the expertly crafted dialogue come to life. Jeff Bridges astounds as Cogburn, giving us a character that is both nuanced and yet accessible. (The true sign of both excellent acting and writing) Matt Damon also continues his recent trend of quality performances, but the real surprise is Hailee Steinfeld as Mattie Ross. It’s very rare that not only such a young actress can dazzle us but in her first performance no less. Steinfeld is an actress with a very bright future and I can only say that I want to see more from her in the years to come.

True Grit is a picture that could have had a lot of things wrong with it; for one, it’s an adaptation which always has the potential to go south very fast and it is a very linear picture which may or may not work. In the hands of the production crew however, it becomes one of the best Westerns in years and a film I would recommend to movie lovers everywhere. If you’re in the market for something wonderful and intelligent, you can do a whole lot worse than True Grit.

Rating: ***** / *****

VIDEOS:

Click here to view the embedded video.

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[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

The King’s Speech; Directed By Tom Hooper: Starring Colin Firth, Geoffery Rush, Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Gambon and Guy Pearce.

It goes without saying that if you know me, I usually can’t stand period dramas. They all seem to follow a predictable path to a conclusion we all know is coming. Chances are also that they rack up more Academy Award/Golden Globe nominations than films that deserve them. (i.e. The Dark Knight and Watchmen). However, as I left the theater after watching The King’s Speech I was, if you’ll excuse the pun, speechless. Here is a film that came straight out of left field to deliver a powerful and emotional experience that stands toe to toe with the best 2010 had to offer, like True Grit, The Fighter, etc. I can say in all safety that The King’s Speech deserves every bit of praise it has garnered and is sure to garner. Colin Firth as King George VI delivers the best performance of any actor in 2010, bar none. I was, in all sincerity ready to give that to Leonardo DiCaprio for Shutter Island or Jesse Eisenberg for The Social Network, but after watching the devotion and care that Colin Firth rewarded us with, it goes without saying.

The story follows Albert, The Duke Of York as he overcomes the stammer that has plagued him his entire life. We see several failed attempts before we’re introduced to Lionel Logue, (Geoffery Rush) an unconventional Australian speech therapist who helps Albert and becomes the closest thing to a friend he has. As George V becomes increasingly weaker, political machinations work in favor of Albert’s brother David, who shirks the responsibilities of the crown in order to pursue an American divorcee. Albert, with the help of Logue and his wife (Helena Bonham Carter) must show that he can step in as king, and overcome any problems he may have for his people and his country at the start of World War II.

Right off the bat, what works extremely well is the dialogue, written with an edge of sardonic wit that boosts the entire film to a level it may not have been without it. Geoffery Rush is astounding as Lionel Logue and a perfect compliment to Colin Firth’s George VI. In fact, everyone is on their A Game here, personifying exactly who they need to be when they need to be them. This is a film that knows what it wants to get from us but takes it’s time and in doing so made a risky decision. So many period dramas have floundered because of  skewed timing, but King’s Speech is the rare film that doesn’t. Not only does time fly when you watch these brilliant actors recite this brilliant dialogue, but chances are you won’t even want it to end. I know I didn’t, and without saying too much the ending, synchronized perfectly with Beethoven’s 7th Symphony Allegretto, is nothing short of breathtaking. This is a film for mature, cultured people who will receive the very finest entertainment for being patient. Even if the award bearers snub Christopher Nolan as they have continually done, I can at least proudly say that my runner up is The King’s Speech. For a film nominated for seven Golden Globes, I can say that every one that it wins, it has earned.

Rating: ***** / *****

VIDEOS:

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[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

Black Swan; Directed By Darren Aronofsky: Starring Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Vincent Cassel, Barbara Hershey and Winona Ryder.

Terrifying. Thrilling. Sensual. Psychotic; these words, among many more describe Darren Aronofsky’s work of art Black Swan. Even though I knew beforehand I would love this film, what I saw in the theatre both compelled and disgusted me. I wanted to look away but was so captivated and mesmerized that I could only stare slack jawed at something I would need to see again and again, if only to satisfy a certain dark impulse.

It’s no secret if you know me that I LOVE Darren Aronofsky’s films. Much like Stanley Kubrick, Quentin Tarantino, Andrei Tarkovsky or Christopher Nolan, anything the man directs I will love. I even championed The Fountain when people called it mental masturbation and I was shocked that Mickey Rourke didn’t receive the Oscar he deserved for The Wrestler. With Black Swan, Aronofsky has done the seemingly impossible. He took simplicity and gave us complexity. He took light and gave us darkness…but most importantly he took our expectations and shattered them.

Black Swan follows the journey of Nina Sayers, (played to perfection by Natalie Portman) a fragile, innocent dancer who is cast in a new production of Swan Lake by Thomas Leroy, (the wonderful Vincent Cassel) her company’s director. Thomas casts her knowing that The White Swan would be no problem for Nina, but he pushes her into ‘letting go’ and embodying both the gentle White Swan and the sinister Black Swan. This is the crux of the film, the apex upon which all symbolic, metaphorical and literal satisfaction derives from. The premise of Nina’s metamorphosis from the delicate girl she is, to the daring girl she must become in order to beat out the competition (Mila Kunis) and be perfect in a world that seeks nothing else. It dabbles in the premise of the doppelganger as well as cleverly alluding to a work from Dostoevsky. In short, it’s downright genius.

What cinches the entire thing of course is Natalie Portman, in one of the best performances I’ve seen all year. I haven’t been moved by a performance like this in a very long time and who better to do it than one of my favorite actresses? The supporting cast only enhance the experience, be it the manipulative director, Nina’s ‘competition’ or her overbearing mother, played to a tee by Barbara Hershey. The tension in the film will have you gripping the armrests, but the few moments of levity will lull you into a false sense of calm. This is a psychological thriller taken to the extreme and the result in the hands of  a master like Aronofsky are breathtaking.

In a way, I would agree with Aronofsky when he said that Black Swan is a companion piece to his previous film The Wrestler. Whereas that film dealt with redemption, pride and family, Black Swan deals with obsession, loneliness and insanity all within the context of a ballet company. In only one word, Black Swan is perfect. A disturbing trend I’ve found in the two times I’ve seen this film however is people chuckling at moments they don’t understand or think would be better with explosions and breasts. This is not a film for the Roland Emmerich crowd who think the bigger the CGI bill the better. This is a challenging film that demands your attention and understanding but rewards you with beauty and abject terror. Don’t miss this film; skip the latest Hollywood crowd-pleasing nonsense and head on over to a showing of Black Swan. It will be worth whatever you pay to see it and I guarantee you’ll love it. Bravo Darren Aronofsky, Bravo.

(I would also like to wish the readers of B-Town Blog a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year. Thanks for reading and I hope to stay for as long as I can!)

Rating: ***** / *****

VIDEOS:

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[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]

by Philip Benais

The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader; Directed By Michael Apted; Starring Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, Will Poulter, Ben Barnes, Liam Neeson and Simon Pegg.

I must admit I’m rather late to The Chronicles Of Narnia films; seeing as how this is the first film I’ve seen and I’ve only read The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, I can’t say I know very much about C.S. Lewis’ epic saga. I do know that ever since the first Narnia film the entire series had the air of trying to cash in on what are probably much better books, and that many elements were lifted without shame from other popular fantasy films. What I expected Voyage Of The Dawn Treader to be was a slim retelling of the book with lots of fluff and special effects to fill in the rest, but that wasn’t the case. This film is flawed, but in a charming, nostalgic way that harkens back to films we all watched as children and were amazed by. At times it can be very by the numbers and linear but there are genuine moments of entertainment to be had, so long as you don’t think about it too much.

The story follows Edmund and Lucy, the two youngest Pevensie children staying with their snooty cousin Eustace as their brother Peter is studying for his university entrance exams and Susan is in America. After a routine day of bickering with their obnoxious twerp of a cousin, Lucy discovers a majestic painting that pulls Edmund, Lucy and Eustace into it. When they arise from the water, they find themselves in Narnia once more where King Caspian is in need of their assistance. Together, they have to find seven mystical swords and present them at Aslan’s table to defeat a green mist kidnapping citizens. It’s an adventure that will change Lucy, Edmund and all of Narnia.

Right off the bat, the immediate problem I have with this film is Eustace. Many different things come to my mind when trying to describe Eustace, all of them slanderous. For the majority of the film, I wished SOMEONE would shut him up, so I wouldn’t have the compulsion to vomit uncontrollably. Thankfully they do manage to fix his character at the end of the first half, but it never managed to resolve how annoying he was beforehand. It also doesn’t help that Edmund, Lucy and Caspian are colossal bores. I appreciate the fact that they’re trying, but in the end I was still wishing the dialogues between them were shorter and that Reepicheep (played with subtle precision by Simon Pegg) would end up being the actual hero. For a good portion of the film you also have a distinct feeling of deja vu. This isn’t to discredit C.S. Lewis, but more to discredit Michael Apted, for giving us a Narnia film that feels like a rip off of Harry Potter, Labyrinth and many more. How can you take an epic saga and reduce it to Fantasy Flavor Of The Week? Ask Michael Apted, he’ll be glad to tell you.

Having said that, there are some very positive things in this film, the main ones being Simon Pegg and Liam Neeson, who is so awesome I’ve created my own saying whenever I see him in a film. (Nobody Messes With Liam Neeson. At least that’s the censored version) Both Pegg and Neeson give their characters extraordinary staying power and you’re more likely to remember them than the other characters. Also, as much as I rag on this film for being predictable, they did manage to give the ending some emotional weight, lulling us into thinking this may very well be the last we see of Narnia. (Which is hogwash, but still) The special effects are also very nice, and even though I didn’t see the film in 3D, it was very pretty and atmospheric.

Unlike the majority of films I’ve reviewed thus far, Voyage Of The Dawn Treader isn’t particularly good or particularly bad; it walks the line between the two at different times and manages to give us a flawed, if at times worthwhile experience. I would recommend it solely on the basis of Simon Pegg, Liam Neeson, the ending and the special effects. In essence, a great diversion in preparation for more substantial fare coming in the new year.

Rating: ** ½ / *****

VIDEOS:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.

[EDITOR'S NOTE: Philip Benais is our newest Intern, a 16-year old student at Big Picture High School in SeaTac. He's an aspiring Writer who loves movies, so we let him write reviews for us.

Read more of his work here.]