The Forbidden Room (2015)

Directed by: Guy Maddin, Evan Johnson
Country: Canada

Movie Review: Don't expect anything linear when it comes out of the insubordinate, tortuous mind of the Canadian cult filmmaker Guy Maddin, who in his last sumptuously demented tale, “The Forbidden Room”, had the contribution of the newcomer Evan Johnson as co-writer and co-director. As in the majority of his past works, the film masterfully evokes the black-and-white silent classics and Technicolor fantasies in order to create a layered story that despite the numerous sinister characters and baffling interactions among them, can be summarized as a man desperately looking for a woman. A jocose spirit is present since its very beginning when a man wearing a robe discourses about how to take a bath. This hilarious little dissertation leads us to the central story – Cesare, a courageous woodsman, mysteriously appears aboard of a submarine that is condemned to explode. He’s looking for his kidnaped love, Margot, now an amnesiac prisoner of The Wolf who is kept in a nauseating cave. This main story breaks into multiple inventive fragments that entangle one another with more or less complexity, but which can be easily remembered by their own. They’re all bizarre with no exceptions, yet two sections are particularly mesmerizing: one involving a man identified as The Dead Father, whose mustache is of crucial importance to maintain his family in an emotionally controlled state when he plans to abandon them, and another, in which a woman called Gong had to be subjected to a gut-wrenching re-break of her bones in order to fix them correctly. The casting includes reputable international actors such as Mathieu Amalric, Charlotte Rampling, Udo Kier, Geraldine Chaplin, Maria de Medeiros, Jacques Nolot, Roy Dupuis, Clara Furey, and the recurrent Louis Negin. Near the ending, the inscrutable Mr. Maddin reveals the solution for the perplexing cinema he’s been digging in for more than two decades. He tells us with every word about the stuff his films are made of: dreams / visions / madness. With “The Forbidden Room”, Maddin’s fans will continue to rejoice while a few new followers can be dragged into the cult.

Taxi (2015)

Directed by: Jafar Panahi
Country: Iran

Movie Review: One can wonder how is it possible that the Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, who was sentenced by the authoritarian regime of his country to 20 years without making cinema, still manages to direct clandestine masterpieces with a disarming simplicity, emotional truthfulness, social-political awareness, and delightfully humorous situations. Well, my theory is the following: if you really love what you do and have something to say, there’s nothing that can stop you. After his professional banishment, Panahi has directed critically acclaimed films that mix reality and fiction, thoroughly mirroring what he was experiencing at each of those well-defined time slots of his existence. If “This is Not a Film” was a raw documentary that aimed to denounce the humiliating deprivations he was subjected to, “Close Curtain” introduced a lot more fictional elements to build up an imaginative plot. These two films were made when he was under house arrest. In his latest, “Taxi”, the most direct, enjoyable, and accessible documentary-like film from the currently censored phase, Panahi leaves home to show us a factual slice of today’s Tehran. He pretends to be a taxi driver who calmly rides throughout the city, interacting with a variety of passengers (real or fictional) in engrossing situations that tell us much about what his people think and how they feel, (re)act, and live. Not a single passenger is futile and the set fits perfectly the filmmaker’s intentions. Among them, we have a short man who illegally sells foreign movies, a wounded man who wants to change his will before dying, two superstitious ladies carrying a fish bowl, Panahi’s talkative niece who’s trying to make a ‘screenable’ short film for school, a conversation with a desolated childhood friend, and a fortuitous encounter with the affable ‘flower lady’ - another victim of the censorship. With an approach that is similar to Kiarostami’s “Ten” and a few references to Panahi’s old films, the unmissable “Taxi” is one of those cinematic wonders you want to prolong. Mr. Panahi’s only sin was not having more characters to ride – maybe because at the end some motorcyclist broke into his taxi. After this movie, I wouldn’t be surprised if, once again, he was considered a serious threat to the Iran’s security and banned from driving in the country.

Tale of Tales (2015)

Directed by: Matteo Garrone
Country: Italy / others

Movie Review: Competent Italian filmmaker, Matteo Garrone, who over the last few years has been giving us memorable films such as “Gomorrah” and “Reality”, hauls us into three Baroque tales from the 17th century, in which the real and the unreal go hand in hand. The director, who exquisitely and efficaciously brings in mystical elements and dreamlike sequences, mixing them with the ethereal music by Alexandre Desplat, combines fulgurant medieval settings to host the odd stories, loosely adapted from the fairy-tale collection ‘Il Pentamerone’ by the Neapolitan poet, Giambattista Basile. The first tale tells us about an anguished queen (Selma Hayek) who can’t cope with the impossibility of having children. However, a sinister occultist offers her the solution – the king (John C. Reilly) has to kill a sea monster and rip its heart out, to be cooked by a virgin and eaten by the queen. That way, she will become pregnant immediately. The vaticination comes true, and the queen acts radiant, even losing her husband in the risky sea hunt. What wasn’t explained, was that the virgin who cooked the heart would also get pregnant of a boy who looks exactly the same as the prince, and that they will be forever inseparable. Another tale takes us to an odd king (the unique Toby Jones) who lives with his young daughter, Violet (Bebe Cave). While the daughter sings to him, his attention goes entirely to a flea that hops on his hands. Over the following years, he secretly nurtures the flea, which turns into a gigantic creature. When the flea dies, he decides to exhibit its skin and give his daughter as a bride to whoever guesses its origin. A brute Ogre was the one who wins the trophy, taking the terrified Violet to his dungeon in the highest of the mountains. The last tale is about a lustful king (Vincent Cassel) who falls in love with the angelical voice of a woman whom he has never seen the face. This woman is a wrinkled old woman who surrealistically manages to become young again, leaving her aged sister lonely and jealous. I have to admit that my enthusiasm was let a bit down by an out-of-the-blue conclusion that certainly hides inscrutable philosophical meanings. Anyway, “Tale of Tales”, the first English-language film from Mr.Garrone, bewitched me somehow with its extraordinary, recondite mood.

Every Thing Will Be Fine (2015)

Directed by: Wim Wenders
Country: Germany / Canada / others

Movie Review: After the masterpiece documentary “The Salt of the Earth” about the Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado, the extraordinary German director, Wim Wenders, stumbles in his most recent fictional drama, “Every Thing Will Be Fine”. Here, the iconic filmmaker works over a script by the Norwegian Bjorn Olaf Johannessen and entrusts to James Franco, Charlotte Gainsbourg, and Rachel McAdams, the main roles. The story is based on Tomas Elden (Franco), a writer who’s making an effort to maintain in good terms the relationship with his girlfriend, Sara (McAdams). In the middle of that intricate process, he has a traumatic accident, in which a kid dies after recklessly crossing the street in front of his van. Tomas becomes so affected by the incident that he breaks up with Sara and tries to commit suicide. However, after recovering at the hospital, he gradually finds his inner peace, becoming more and more inspired and prolific in his writings. Two years after, he finds his novel critically acclaimed. This fact provokes a sort of exasperation in the victim’s mother, Kate (Gainsbourg), an illustrator who opens the door of her house to Tomas, in an ultimate attempt to ease her pain. Also, her eldest son, Christopher, who was with his brother when the accident occurred, can’t really live in peace with the consuming trauma. The story spans for more than a decade, and even starts with some significance, but falls in a troublesome passivity of processes along the way. The genius of Mr. Wenders, who plays safe this time, completely fades away in a shabby drama characterized by a dismayed atmosphere, monotonous pace, and lifeless interactions among the characters, which transport us to repeated rueful psychological scenarios and pushes us into long-awaited resolutions. By the end, it seemed that the drama would evolve to a sort of thriller, but instead, the painful torpor takes care of the remaining time. The film didn’t touch me, not even once, while the performances of Mr. Franco and Ms. Gainsbourg didn’t impress me either.

Partisan (2015)

Directed by: Ariel Kleiman
Country: Australia

Movie Review: Charismatic French actor, Vincent Cassel, who continues very active during this year in “Tale of Tales”, “Child 44”, “Mon Roi” and “One Wild Moment”, sturdily plays Gregori, a commune's polygamous leader whose occupation consists in training his children so they can become remorseless assassins. The Australian “Partisan”, despite vacillatingly opaque in its developments, was a good vehicle for Mr. Cassel reassure his performing capabilities, this time as a controlling, egocentric villain with low moral values and an evil scheme carried out with the children’s mothers’ consent. The 11-year-old Alex (newcomer Jeremy Chabriel) is his brightest son, being always the first in the general knowledge tests, very precise in the shooting sessions, and coldly efficacious in the exterminating missions. Gregori is so proud of him that he constantly forgives the minor disobediences Alex is up to – he collects stuff from the outside world, deliberately interacts with strangers, buys meat for his unstable mother (newcomer Florence Mezzara), besides all the mischief associated with the kids in his age. However, Alex always showed a great respect for his protective, and simultaneously abusive father. On the contrary, Leo (Alex Balaganskiy), another sensitive kid who keeps disarming Gregori with wise words and antagonistic behaviors, doesn’t share this respect. When he fiercely holds onto a chicken in order to protect it from death and avoid its extinction, Gregori manages to punish him in his own guileful way. This is the moment when Alex, who swears to protect his newborn baby brother, starts acting in accordance to his own thoughts and not driven by his untrustworthy father. First-time director and co-writer, Ariel Kleiman, was able to set an appropriate moody atmosphere and also drawing unadulterated cold looks from the father and son. Yet, and without prejudice of what he did well, some secondary scenes are not so natural (Alex’s mother crisis is a good example) while we’re left a bit empty in regard to the motives and beliefs of the intriguing Gregori. Moreover, The film’s disconsolate climax, despite clear and transparent, felt somewhat hasty, triggering those typical bothersome sensations that arise from an undercooked plot.

The Visit (2015)

Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
Country: USA

Movie Review: M. Night Shyamalan’s “The Visit” can be defined as a kids’ parody that eventually turns into a hysterical domestic horror adventure, never sufficiently scary to be recommended. If you want an idea of its tone and mood, think of the farcical ambiance of “Home Alone” added up to those pseudo-documentaries known as found footage films (“Rec”, “Paranormal Activity”) in which the characters narrate and record the events with a hand-held camera that is usually more agile than the developments of the plot itself. The film starts with a mother (Kathryn Hahn), explaining to the camera how she fell in love with an older man (who left her afterwards for another woman) with whom she had two children and escaped home against the will of her parents. The same parents, 15 years after she has left, discovered her through the Internet and arranged everything to host the two grandchildren they’ve never met in their isolated Pennsylvania farm. The teenagers Rebecca (Olivia DeJonge) and Tyler (Ed Oxenbould) become enthusiastic about the visit and depart equipped with a camera in order to continue the documentary about the family, already started with an interview with their mom who, meanwhile, takes the opportunity to have some fun with her new boyfriend. However, what they find there, including the wintry landscapes that limit their hide-and-seek games, is not so cheerful. The scenario is intentionally clumsy since the beginning when they realize there’s something wrong with the grandmother (Deanna Dunagan) besides cooking and cleaning compulsively. Moreover, the granddad (Peter McRobbie) has inexplicable, abrupt changes in behavior, and together with his wife, is the center of the odd occurrences that lead to the flimsy final conclusions. The best in “The Visit” are its visuals, brilliantly adorned through an effective use of light and nicely mounted sets. Apart from this, most of the situations that come out of the lame script are pretty stupid, and the film never manages to succeed, whether in comedy or horror. Clearly, Mr. Shyamalan embraces a worthless phase as a filmmaker and screenwriter. For a few years now, I can’t find anything solid in his filmography to recommend, considering that “The Happening”, “The Last Airbender”, and “After Earth” are cinematic aberrations. Long are the glorious days of “The Sixth Sense”, “Unbreakable”, and “Signs”.

The Martian (2015)

Directed by: Ridley Scott
Country: USA

Movie Review: Ridley Scott’s “The Martian” is a good, often funny, sci-fi flick, but not a spectacular one. Visually and technically striking, the film left me a bit wobbly due to a strained plot, which contains a rescue beyond the bounds of imagination, an unlikely collaboration between the NASA and the China National Space Agency, and a farfetched new way of growing potatoes on Mars (imagine!). However, if we close our eyes to its, perhaps too speculative, plot’s stratagems and schemes, it's still possible to find a handful of breathtaking moments to enjoy. The screenwriter, Drew Goddard, who had already disclosed his proneness to unlimited fantasy in past movies such as “World War Z” and “Cloverfield”, based himself on the Andy Weir’s 2011 novel of the same name. The American astronaut, Mark Watney (Matt Damon), gets accidentally stranded on Mars, after an operation that ended up aborted under a severe dust storm. On Martian soil, Mark is gravely wounded, loses his senses, and gets lost from the rest of the crew. The brave commander, Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain), informed by her fellow astronauts that Mark is dead, gives the order to return immediately to the spaceship and abandon the planet, not taking the risk of losing another crew-mate. When the world thought Mark was dead, he surprises everybody, not only giving signs of life (confirmed by satellite images), but also proving he’s healthy and making use of his botanical skills to prepare an artificial piece of land where he’ll try to grow potatoes. This way, he could last three more years until the next scheduled mission to the planet. The general problems in these cases start to appear, but the extremely versatile Mark never loses his good disposition and faith. On the Earth, the NASA is ruminating on the best way to bring Mark back home. Heading the operations are the optimistic director Teddy Sanders (Jeff Daniels) and his expeditious right-arm and mission director, Vincent Kapoor (Chiwetel Ejiofor). Ridley Scott feels comfortable within a genre that he knows extremely well. The Polish cinematographer, Dariusz Wolski, who had worked with Mr. Scott in “Prometheus”, does much better than Harry Gregson-Williams in the music department. Slightly overlong and just pinching in terms of excitement, “The Martial”, though watchable, fails to be the masterpiece that Mr. Scott has envisioned.

Labyrinth of Lies (2014)

Directed by: Giulio Ricciarelli
Country: Germany

Movie Review: “Labyrinth of Lies” is a German historical drama, set in 1958, that addresses the dignified endeavors of the young state prosecutor, Johan Radmann, who sets mind on taking to the justice the unpunished SS officials and doctors who still live freely after torturing and killing thousands of innocent people in the terrifying Auschwitz concentration camp during the world war. The shame of a complicated past of a powerful country seduced by Hitler’s Nazi regime, falls on Radmann, stiffly played by Alexander Fehling, who sees former Nazis everywhere. During the relentless investigation, a labyrinth that nobody wants to deal with, he unveils a few painful truths that devastate him inside, to the point of wanting to abandon the task. His best friend, the zealous journalist Thomas Gnielka (André Szymanski), was a member of the party when he was very young, as well as the father of his seductive girlfriend, Marlene (Friederike Becht), and his own father who's still missing since the end of the war. Radmann starts interviewing former victims of Auschwitz, while trying to capture the abominable, unrepentant culprits such as Schultz, who was teaching children at a school, and Dr. Josef Mengele, who is now living in Buenos Aires and was responsible for inhumane lab experiences that took the life of the twin little daughters of the artist Simon Kirsch (Johannes Krisch), a tormented soul who survived the camp and hardly agrees to collaborate. Radmann’s honorable cause, here depicted with no less estimable intentions by the Italian actor-turned-director, Giulio Ricciarelli (directorial debut), isn’t a synonym of an accomplished movie. Actually, an obstructive formalism in the approach and the rusty performances aggravate the issues of a post-holocaust account that struggles in a few instances to find cohesion and tightness. Adopting tidy visuals and swinging between Hollywood’s standard twitches and TV series’ monotone routines, “Labyrinth of Lies” lacks intrigue and never manages to really speak to the heart. Its artificial undertones were the main reason why Mr. Ricciarelli couldn’t extract more and better from a strong real story. And thus, the film instantly vanishes from our minds when the theater lights are turned on.

99 Homes (2014)

Directed by: Ramin Bahrani
Country: USA

Movie Review: American-Iranian filmmaker, Ramin Bahrami, returns in big with “99 Homes”, a thoroughly observed analysis of the financial/real estate crisis that ravaged the US around 2010. Andrew Garfield and Michael Shannon star, respectively as the man to evict from the house his family was living forever, and the greedy real estate broker with an insatiable ambition to own more and more properties in the state of Florida. Dennis Nash (Garfield), an honest construction worker who lives with his mother (Laura Dern) and little son (Noah Lomax), gets desperate after going into court and be told by the judge that he has to vacate his house. Dennis gets panicky with the situation, but relies on more 30 days given by the judge, in the case he wants to appeal. Next morning, for his surprise, two inflexible cops and the impeccably dressed real estate broker, Richard Carver (Shannon), who works with a gun strapped to his ankle, appear at his door, informing that the house is now owned by the bank and that they have two minutes to pack what they want and leave. It’s an embarrassing moment for Dennis and his family, who are placed in a motel that hosts a bunch of people in the same situation. In extreme need of money and with the unique thought of retrieving his family house, Dennis accepts a dirty offer made by Carver and goes to work for him. He’s hired to fix houses that need urgent repair, but soon starts doing to other people exactly the same as Carver did to him. ‘Don’t get emotional over real estate’ – says the glacial Carver. Bluntly and heartlessly, Dennis shamefully evicts people under pressure from their houses. He isn’t an insatiable vulture as Carver, though. His conscience bites at every dispossession, becoming unbearable when his mother leaves with his son, abandoning him in a huge new property with a spectacular pool. I was happy to find that Mr. Bahrani, who co-wrote with Amir Naderi, is back to his best, recovering his resonant voice when it comes to denouncing the world’s social problems. His previous, “At Any Price”, wasn’t so consistent, but his past work includes the brilliant “Man Push Cart”, “Chop Chop”, and “Goodbye Solo”. “99 Homes” confirms his superior narrative skills, while showcases two smashingly compelling performances by the protagonists.

Wildlike (2014)

Directed by: Frank Hall Green
Country: USA

Movie Review: Writer, director and co-producer, Frank Hall Green, presents his sophomore fictional feature, which arrives with plausibility and dramatic strength, and leaves not only with uncertainty, but also with a steady light of hope at the end of a dark tunnel. “Wildlike” is an independent drama that tells the distressing story of McKenzie (Ella Purnell), an unfortunate fatherless 14-year-old who ends up living with an estranged uncle (Brian Geraghty) in Juneau, Alaska, when his mother is hospitalized. At first, the uncle seems to be simultaneously attentive and caring but soon reveals an immoral dark side, abusing sexually of the quiet girl who runs away on the first opportunity she gets. Lost and desperate, she walks many miles through the amazing Alaskan landscapes, sleeping in an unlocked car and ultimately finding a motel where she sneaks into the room of the backpacker Rene Bartlett (Bruce Greenwood). When he finds her underneath his bed, he gets startled, but despite his efforts to reach her, she manages to escape without an explanation. Before bumping into Rene again (like a karma), McKenzie approaches a much younger backpacker by knocking at his door and asking if she can take a shower. The young man, seeing her wrapped in a towel on his bed, advances for a kiss, bringing all the recent ignominious memories. The brusque, yet good-hearted middle-aged Rene is marked as the man to follow while she tries to figure out the best way to return to Seattle and contact her mother. The new friends open up, telling more about their lives, a fact that leads the highly confused McKenzie to an embarrassing misstep. The tensest moments in the film are narrow and all together just last a few minutes. They include a fortuitous encounter with a menacing black bear and a couple situations when the fugitive tries to hide from the police officers and the insulting uncle. Evenly plotted, “Wildlike”, which oscillates between the tactful and the warmish, leaves us with the sensation that its developments could be even stronger in order to be treasured. It stands firm mostly because of Ella Purnell’s extremely sensitive performance and the unflinching surprises that the pragmatic Mr. Green takes out of his sleeve.

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015)

Directed by: Alfonso Gomez-Rejon
Country: USA

Movie Review: When taking into account the themes of “Me and Earl and the Dying Girl”, a glorious coming-of-age comedy-drama written by Jesse Andrews (based in his own novel) and directed by Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (his sophomore feature film), we must conclude that its crew and cast were capable of pulling the film out of standardized comfort zones. The young actor, Thomas Mann, is delightfully awkward when playing Greg, a senior at Pittsburgh's Schenley High School, who likes to cultivate his invisibility by remaining in good terms with everybody but never in a way that’s not casual or mellow. He’s best friends with the lazy Earl (RJ Cyler), a long-time partner in the making of a few secret short movies that aim to ridicule the classics. Greg is compelled by his intrusive mother to call Rachel (Olivia Cooke), his fellow student and former childhood friend who was diagnosed with leukemia. Regardless the extreme reluctance of both, Greg and Rachel start seeing each other at her place, and their encounters can be described as weirdly enjoyable. Greg’s presence is always fully embraced by Rachel’s single mother, Denise (Molly Shannon), who finds him modest and handsome. After some time, a strong bond consolidates, triggering some spiteful commentaries by some mean colleagues who affirm that Greg just speaks to Rachel because she has cancer. However, Greg’s hot crush, Madison, suggests he could make a film for Rachel. Amidst some quarrels with the presuming Earl, Greg seeks inspiration for the film in order to please his dying friend, the one he always manages to cheer up, receiving in turn, some rebukes about his lack of initiative and some orientation regarding important fast-approaching choices. In addition to its congenial offbeat tones, this giving/receiving exchange is the key to the beauty of the film. Other few stupendous occurrences deserve to be mentioned – the one when Greg and Earl got accidentally on drugs is hilarious. Gomez-Rejon’s camera moves confidently and dares to some inventive angles, intelligently mounting frames that are as much idiosyncratic as its characters. Packed with refreshing good ideas, this is a rich, rewarding story whose finale is beautiful, sore, and touching.

Mississippi Grind (2015)

Directed by: Anna Boden, Ryan Fleck
Country: USA

Movie Review: If you’re in the mood for those pungent dramas about losers, gamblers, wanderers, solitaries, and despairing human creatures that inhabit the face of the Earth struggling with financial problems and family disillusions, “Mississippi Grind”, may be a splendid pick. The meritorious performances of Ben Mendelsohn, playing a vicious poker player who ultimately is going through a phase of bad luck, and Ryan Reynolds (replacing Jake Gyllenhaal), as a sympathetic younger gambler who loves to talk to people and charming them with amazing stories about other gamblers, are sufficient motives to follow the film. The disheartened Gerry (Mendelsohn), an absent father and divorced real estate agent whose life is in a complete mess, slowly approaches the Iowan casino where he daily tries his luck. He wants to win so badly, so he can pay his giant debts and regain the confidence he has lost in order to reconnect with his little daughter. While at the poker table, he gets fascinated with Curtis (Reynolds), who immediately draws his attention. Gerry truly starts to believe that Curtis can be the one who can change his luck. Both become friends, setting off on a road trip in which a few interesting encounters and episodes inject some more substance than just the gambling itself. The destiny is New Orleans, but underway, they make a couple of stops. The first is in St. Louis, where Curtis visits his girlfriend, Simone (Sienna Miller), at the house where men can find companionship. Once there, Gerry nurtures a special fondness for Vanessa (Analeigh Tipton), a sweet girl who wants to change her life and enthusiastically shows him some magic tricks. Then, a big bet is waiting for the avid Gerry in Memphis, but once again, he leaves empty-handed. Before reaching the destiny, they make a little detour to Little Rock, where Gerry meets with his ex-wife. Shamefully, he falls into the temptation of trying to steal cash from her. Failure after failure, the two friends are daring enough to sometimes play with their lives. Are they condemned to fail forever? The mood adopted by the American writers/directors, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck ("Half Nelson"), is reminiscent of Robert Altman’s films from the 70’s, whereas the musical score – a blend of old blues and other westerner tunes – supplies the appropriate flavor to consolidate its dynamics.

Black Mass (2015)

Directed by: Scott Cooper
Country: USA

Movie Review: After an extraordinary start, marked by unforgettable presences in “Dead Man”, “Ed Wood”, “Gilbert Grape” and “Donnie Brasco”, the actor Johnny Depp has fed his curriculum, not only with dignified choices based on fantasy - most of them conceived by Tim Burton - but also with a few repulsive flicks like “The Lone Ranger”, “The Tourist”, and “Transcendence”. In the fact-based “Black Mass”, a fairly watchable gangster thriller, directed by Scott Cooper in a similar line of Scorsese, he returns to a strong role, playing the violent Irish-American gangster, Jimmy ‘Whitey’ Bulger, who was a terror to his enemies, but a sweet, nice guy for his family and friends. The film starts with Johnny Martorano (W. Earl Brown), Jimmy’s trustful hitman, being questioned about the gang’s operation and the cold ways of dealing with snitches. Also, Jimmy’s right-hand, Steve Flemmi (Rory Cochrane) agrees to narrate a few past episodes involving the business. We learn that Jimmy did what he did because he had his back covered by his influential brother, senator Billy Bulger (Benedict Cumberbatch), and a dishonest special agent, John Connolly, earnestly played by Noel Edgerton, who had grown up with them and recently has returned to the city. The latter undermines the police and the FBI and persuades his boss to accept an illicit alliance admitting the ruthless Jimmy as a consultant in the battle against the Mafiosi Angiulo brothers. Step by step, Jimmy, unable to hide his involvement in drugs, extortion, and murder, becomes bigger and more ambitious, imposing total respect to Connolly who becomes shaky when his wife, Marianne, confronts his morality. Unexpectedly, the most significant scenes are non-violent: one in the beginning, when he explains to his little son why he shouldn’t be in trouble for punching another kid at school; and another tense one, when a ‘family recipe’ is easily given away. On the contrary, the violent scenes are scarcely exciting and sum up into a few artful, cold-blooded gunshots. Notwithstanding, and despite the many side characters and situations, the story is no muddled. Depp isn't Brando or Pesci, yet he’s a justifiable fit for the unsentimental role.

Everest (2015)

Directed by: Baltasar Kormakur
Country: USA / UK / Iceland

Movie Review: Efficient Icelandic director, Baltasar Kormakur, returns to the cinematic recreations of dramatic real-life events after the accomplished “The Deep”, dated from two years ago. Right after the latter, he made an incursion into the fictional action-crime genre with the uninvolving “Two Guns”, starring Denzel Washington and Mark Wahlberg. “Everest”, an account of the tragedy occurred in the Earth's highest mountain in the spring of 1996, also presents a strong cast, including Jason Clarke, Jake Gyllenhaal, Josh Brolin, John Hawkes, Keira Knightley, Robin Wright, and Emily Watson. Screenwriters William Nicholson and Simon Beaufoy try to assemble the different pieces in a mix of family drama, human competition, and survival epic, but in my eyes, and despite watchable, the film falls short of something big. A group of audacious climbers of several nationalities aims to reach the top of the Everest. The New Zealander Rob Hall (Clarke) and the American Scott Fischer (Gyllenhaal) are two experienced guides who, competing each other to get the attention of the media, will drive a group that features Beck Weathers (Brolin), who doesn’t seem so confident as the others and expose himself to some calamitous situations, Doug Hansen (Hawkes), who had failed the task before but wants to prove he can do it, and Yasuko Namba (Naoko Mori), who already had climbed six of the seven highest peaks. Halfway, all of them talk about their motivations to embark on the expedition, which is constantly monitored by Helen (Watson), the base camp manager, who keeps them informed about the weather conditions, via radio. With more or less difficulty, the glory is attained by most of the climbers, who had no idea of what would come next. A huge storm, bringing devastating chilly winds and blinding heavy snows, sweeps the mountain when all of them, except two, had initiated the descent. To pump up the anxiety, oxygen bottles are not available anymore and high-altitude pulmonary edema attacks mercilessly, leaving the most fragile freezingly motionless. The drama of the mountaineers’ wives is also a crucial point of Kormakur’s camera, which seeks the best vertiginous angles to provoke us a few shivers.  All the same, “Everest” is more breathtaking than emotionally responsive, failing to mightily step onto the peak of the subgenre where it belongs.

Sicario (2015)

Directed by: Denis Villeneuve
Country: USA

Movie Review: “Sicario” is an adult, virile, expertly crafted thriller. Just as we expected since it was directed by the acclaimed Quebecois filmmaker, Denis Villeneuve, who already had stun us with the rigorous “Polytechnique”, the thrilling “Incendies”, and the enigmatic “Enemy”. His last, “Prisoners”, despite the great performances of Hugh Jackman and Jake Gylenhaal, was the weakest link of a vibrant career, a sort of a breach that “Sicario”, which intelligently addresses an exceptional operation carried out by the CIA to hunt the leader of a drug cartel that infests the troublesome US-Mexican border, comes now to restore. The TV series actor, Taylor Sheridan, has an auspicious debut on screenwriting, devising a story that never felt unreal, strained, or pretentious. Every move is made seamlessly, and even the darkest and most violent moments are compelling and utterly absorbing. Emily Blunt is Kate Macer, an acute FBI agent who plays an important tactical role in a SWAT team that recently has discovered dozens of mutilated bodies concealed in a secluded house in Arizona. Almost without any explanation, she’s assigned to help with an unclear CIA mission said to occur around the El Paso area. Kate will operate under the orders of Matt (Josh Brolin), a flippant consultant for the Department of Defense, who doesn’t stop to surprise us along the way. He’s the kind of guy who goes to important meetings wearing flip-flops, adopts a disconcerting posture when questioned, and embraces a natural carefree attitude. The team also relies on the ambiguous Alejandro (Benicio Del Toro), a drug-cartel connoisseur with a shadowy past. His determination may be similar to Kate’s, but his true motivations, integrity, and modus operandi are totally distinct. “Sicario” carries high levels of tension, a considerable number of violent action scenes, and a psychological side that works in the plenitude of its possibilities. It doesn’t cross the borders of perfection (a redundant subplot involving a Mexican police officer feels time-consuming), however, it’s equipped with a down-to-earth photography, a disquieting musical score, and gutsy action scenarios. All the performances were phenomenal, but Del Toro is the one who steals great part of the show.

The New Girlfriend (2014)

Directed by: François Ozon
Country: France

Movie Review: Forceful actor Romain Duris, despite a bit funny dressed and acting as a woman, breathes some charm and certain glamour in the brand new drama “The New Girlfriend” from the admired French helmer François Ozon, who steadily carried out the screen adaptation of the Ruth Rendell’s short story of the same name. Anais Demoustier and Isild Le Besco play respectively Claire and Laura, two inseparable childhood friends who fortuitously meet their future husbands in the same night. For Claire, it was love at first sight, and she’s in a happy marriage with Gilles (Raphael Personnaz), who may be described as an open-minded, hard-worker, reliable man. Laura was also happy with David, but she dies shortly after giving birth to a beautiful baby daughter. Claire had promised she would take care of Laura's husband and child if something happened to her. However, after Laura's funeral, she persists in avoiding David, clearly struggling to cope with the painful loss. One day, without notice, she decides to stop by David’s house, accidentally discovering an unsettling secret, which only Laura was aware of: David was feeding his baby, dressed as a woman. After the initial shock, Claire starts gradually understanding and accepting David, who makes clear that he really feels the urge to dress and be a woman, regardless all the intimidation of having to assume it publicly. Claire, terribly confused at first, suddenly takes an underlying pleasure in shopping with David, now called Virginia, and even agrees to join him for a weekend at Laura’s country house. On that weekend, during a transgender show at a local nightclub, David is profoundly touched by the performance of the artist. From that moment on, feelings grow a bit messy and blurry at a certain point, a fact that didn’t stop me from following the course of events with a zealous interest. Mr. Ozon, who proves to be a legitimate filmmaker, grabs some moods from Almodóvar, yet giving priority to a seductive moderation over exuberance, and also from Xavier Dolan, with the particularity of being slightly more humorous and less staged. This is a reliable choice for an awesome matinee.

Five Star (2014)

Directed by: Keith Miller
Country: USA

Movie Review: Presented as a low-key fiction-documentary hybrid, “Five Star”, stars James ‘Primo’ Grant, a real member of the Brooklyn’s gang Bloods since the age of 12, who playing himself, might gain some sympathy from some viewers, even considering that this type of characters are usually seen as ruthless and despicable when portrayed in movies. A real life environment, in which we see the protagonist doing multiple jobs, such as security or bodyguard, in order to provide for his family, may do the trick. The film starts with a long shot of Primo talking about his family and how he missed the birth of his beloved son while he was locked in a prison. He says he promised his kids to never leave them again. Back into the vicious streets he knows as the palm of his hand, he proceeds with the illicit business, always honoring the agreements made and demanding respect (the word we hear the most) from the clients as well as from his own members. As he decides to be a better father and husband, he’s also willing to give an opportunity to John Diaz, who learns the codes and culture followed by the gang. John is a difficult teenager whose father, Primo’s mentor, was killed by a stray bullet. Even respecting his good mother very much, John doesn’t hesitate to refuse a job in a local supermarket to accept the offer of Primo who keeps insisting that in his ‘business’ there’s no room for mistakes. There’s no need to say that problems arise when John is assigned with his first package drop-off. Director Keith Miller (“Welcome to Pine Hill”) deliberately leaves ambiguity hovering in terms of what is fiction and what is real, as the film runs at an unhurried pace. He avoids violent scenes, but builds an acceptable tension throughout the episodes that are captured by an often-unsteady camera. The performances, if not great, could have been worse, taking into account the actors’ inexperience. “Five Star” was never vibrant, but it was still able to make us think about the lives of these men, trapped into the mean streets since the day they were born.

Mia Madre (2015)

Directed by: Nanni Moretti
Country: Italy / France

Movie Review: I’ve been following Nanni Moretti’s versatile filmmaking career throughout all these years, and he has gained my appreciation by giving a very particular vision about himself and the world that surrounds him. His work ranges from satirical autobiographical essays (“Dear Diary”, “April”), to incisive dramas (the Palm D’Or “The Son’s Room”), to entertaining comedies (“We Have a Pope”) and even political provocations (”The Caiman”). This time around, Moretti’s approach is slightly different, introducing a few new elements to a drama that tries to mirror the real life of a filmmaker who is experiencing great distress. The restless Margherita (Margherita Buy) struggles to shoot her new film about the laborers of an Italian factory demanding their rights, according to her own concept. Inflexible and difficult to get along with, she has trouble to clearly convey her confusing ideas to the actors – ‘you should play the character but also stand next to the character’, she says. The film becomes even more complicated to finish with the arrival of the American actor, Barry Huggins (John Turturro), a sort of ardent, eccentric dreamer who freaks out whenever he gets blocked in his acting. He’s by far the most interesting character of the film. Even sharing some sympathy for each other, director and actor, enter in a, sometimes freeing, course of collision. Besides work, there’s also Margherita’s personal life, which has been turned into hell since her mother was diagnosed with a terminal illness and now lives permanently at the hospital against her will. Margherita and her dedicated brother, Giovanni (Moretti), who doesn’t bring much to the story, were the ones making the decision. Also her daughter, Livia, and a former lover and actor, Vittorio, contribute to the stress, occasionally expressed through unclear dreams and futile flashbacks. “Mia Madre” advances unevenly, at a vapid pace, and only intermittently was able to enforce some emotional weight. Mr. Moretti has seen better days before, but just as his character’s mom, we’re already thinking in tomorrow because this one is middling.

The Mend (2014)

Directed by: John Magary
Country: USA

Movie Review: Although “The Mend” weaves a few laughable predicaments, I wouldn’t properly call it a comedy. John Magary’s independent debut feature is a vicious, punishing, and scathing study of characters, starring Josh Lucas and Stephen Plunkett as two dysfunctional brothers who simultaneously live in a devouring emotional crisis that leads to self-degradation and existential chaos. Mat (Lucas) and Alan (Plunkett) are suffering from the same ailment - emotional instability - but react in very different ways. The former is lax, unpredictable, and totally carefree (almost self-destructive), spending most of his time wandering the streets of New York, whereas the latter seems unaffected at a first glance, keeping his anger and frustration in an invisible inner level, but despite acting adequately and having a steady job as a legal aid lawyer, he’s prone to easily degenerate in the face of a problem. Instability is not the only point they have in common: both have girlfriends who love them, and they both hold a grudge against their absent father who was diagnosed with Parkinson. On the day before their vacation trip to Quebec, Alan and his girlfriend, Farrah (Mickey Sumner), are giving a small party in their cozy apartment in Harlem when they spot the intruder Mat among the guests. Mat, who apparently broke up with his girlfriend, Andrea (Lucy Owen) and her son after an argument, plans to stay in the apartment while his brother is away, and soon the place is turned into a complete mess. When bedbugs invade Mat’s girlfriend’s apartment, he invites her to the house exactly when Alan unexpectedly arrives from his vacations alone. Devastated and numbed, the latter will admit later that Farrah left him, and now he feels completely adrift. The filmmaking style of Mr. Magary resembles the enthralling realism of the Safdie brothers, boosted by Judd Greenstein and Michi Wiancko’s intriguingly suggestive score, strong dialogues, and the compelling performances from the four main characters. Nevertheless, the film isn’t flawless, occasionally abandoning the required straightforwardness to become diffuse, uneven, and overextended. I had the sensation that the insanity and disorder grow a bit out of proportion in a few crucial scenes.

Gabriel (2014)

Directed by: Lou Howe
Country: USA

Movie Review: Well explored in its thematic and evincing a doleful temperament, “Gabriel” is a crushing drama directed by Lou Howe and starring Rory Culkin as the title character, a psychotic young man who struggles to find some meaning in a life that has been tough to him since he was a kid. The opening scene, where Gabriel, traveling in a bus, offers a cigarette to a little girl and then replies ‘we’re just fucking around’ to her mother when she asks what he was doing, is perfectly demonstrative of how this affected character can behave. Anxious, shaky, and sometimes insolent, the fatherless Gabriel delays the re-encounter with his worried mother and exemplary brother, just to try to find Alice, a former girlfriend whom he wants to marry with, even if he doesn’t see her for a couple of years. This fixation drives him to actions whose consequences are not less than devastating. Before that, there’s time for him to feel overwhelmed and act strangely in front of his family, repeating ‘I’m not my dad’. This statement comes from the fact that he blames his mother and brother for the suicide of his father, the main cause of his trauma. Only his grandmother patiently calms him down for brief periods and forgives his reproachable posture. In turn, his mother, despite acting endearingly, is not much of a help, especially when she says: ‘I couldn’t fix your dad after trying for so many years. And I can’t fix you either’. It’s sad to realize that Gabriel can’t have his own space, as well as the assistance he needs to revitalize his confidence and build the future he dreams – ‘I just want to live like a normal person; have a job, a wife, a life!’. Even so, on a darker scenario, it’s also sad that his urgent actions don’t have an acceptable fundament, being just a desperate attempt to stop the anguish and the restlessness that never leave him. Is Alice the real solution for his displacement? Rory Culkin gives one of the best performances of his career, conveying a believable, painful delirium that is hard to forget.