Student View

First of all, this is one of the very first biography films I've ever seen. The story revolves around a man called "Ramirez Sanchez" aka Carlos The Jackal.

Although it is a biographic film, film production did pretty well in the first 2 parts. The first 2 parts of the story line is full of exciting material and does well in selecting what to present in order to give the audience some ideas of young Carlos’s personalities and his political beliefs. Edgar Ramirez, the main actor, does an outstanding and fearless job capturing the many contradictions of Carlos. The OPEC raid seems to be the peak of this movie.

However, the final part is quite sloppy and hardly entertaining as the first two parts. After the war ends, Carlos loses his ideal revolution by his own frustation and money. This part shows repetitive scenes of Carlos randomly approaching women, living with fear of arrest and drinking to relieve his frustration. I found the assassination and backstabbing in this part very confusing. As the story ran quite fast, I am not sure who was doing what to whom and why. In the end, it is clear that finally Carlos life has taken on him and people around him.

This movie contains some serious nudity. Any guys want to take his first date to see this movie should be concerned with this matter (or your date will be shocked with Ramirez's down there).

In the coming of (old) age tale, Late Bloomers, Mary (Isabella Rossellini) and Adam (William Hurt) portray a long time, happily married couple with three adult children and four grandchildren. Aged at around 60 and looking good for their age, Mary, a retired language teacher and Adam, a partner in a London Architecture firm, struggle with the inevitability of life. Death.

This struggle makes up the core plot of Julie Gavras’ comedy.

Mary suffers from a minor memory lapse and fears that her age has finally caught up with her, although she shouldn’t be too worried if her mother, Nora (Doreen Mantle) is any indicator of her elder years. Nora leads an active social life and has her wits about her, giving the audience a little more insight into life after sixty and adding a fantastic comedic touch.

The story then curves around Mary’s mad attempts to cling to youth. Mary takes up aqua-aerobics and throws herself and her best friend, Charlotte (Joanna Lumley) into volunteer work. This is contrasted and conflicted with her other actions. An eager scramble to meet old age head-on, age-proofing her apartment with bath rails, automated beds, and a large-numbered keypad phone (to Adam’s disgusted shock).

Adam, on the other hand, opts to have a type of post-mid-life crisis. He dresses younger, thowing in with her 20-something colleagues on a pro-bono museum project and drinking Red Bull like it’s water.

All of these actions send Adam spinning in the opposite direction. Having recently been commissioned to design a retirement home (his firm's ethos is to undertake projects other firms traditionally wouldn't), Adam's thoughts had already turned to the prospect of getting old.

Co-written with Olivier Dazat, Late Bloomers is the second feature by Julie Gavras, daughter of Costa Gavras, an esteemed director known for his political dramas (see Z (1969) and Missing (1982)). But there's nothing political or radical about Late Bloomers other than its focus on ageing and people of 'a certain age', a subject rarely broached by filmmakers.

Unfortunately, the film is not overly insightful and the over-examination of two people coming to terms with their mortality is a little bit as Mary insists on mentioning it in every statement she makes and the audience, instead of being left with the intended melancholic empathy, becomes merely frustrated by the repetition.

The comedic touch of he-said she-said (or rather, he-did she-did) also grows old (so to speak) and has been used many times before in a much more effectual way.

Still, I have no doubt the intended audience (the post-middle aged through to the so called 'late bloomers') will enjoy the film's mildly comic tone and performances. Isabella Rossellini is an interesting screen presence who makes 60 (which she will be in June) both appealing and alluring. William Hurt, on the other hand, is a little too grizzled and subdued here, and his English accent often wavers.

Set in New York City, "Man on the Ledge" tells the story of Nick Cassidy (Sam Worthington), a former cop and now wanted fugitive who in order to prove his innocence (after being framed for the theft of a $40 million prized diamond), makes a desperate and life-threatening move to clear his name by hanging on the ledge, 21 floors up a high-rise.

Lydia Mercer (Elizabeth Banks), a famous police negotiator is called to the scene and has the duty to convince the "jumper" to back down on his threat but as the situation evolves she learns that Cassidy's daredevil stunt, although captivating to the public and media, masks a dangerous ploy to reveal the truth about his tarnished name. The film will keep you questioning the character of the "good" and "bad" guys and as simultaneous plots develop to frame and avenge Cassidy, the fast pace and nerve wrecking uncertainties will keep you hanging to your sits 'till Nick's freedom is restored or forever tainted.

"Buck" is a documentary film based on the life and "starting" techniques of the real horse whisperer, Dan "Buck" Brannaman. The film travels through Buck's life and narrates important and self defiant moments of his childhood to his successful approach to handling and training horses though this success has been previously exposed in the 1998 "The Horse Whisperer" starring by Robert Redford. On this documentary however, you get to see the real Buck, a  soft-spoken yet charismatic cowboy and excellent teacher who spends most of his time travelling from one ranch to the next, sharing the principles of ''natural horsemanship''.

To put it mildly The Fall is a visual treat that was especially draw dropping on The Astor’s Superscreen. The film was shot on location across 20 countries. Most of these locations had never been used in a fictional film before. To get a rough idea of what to expect, I would say to think of a melding between the cinematography of Baraka with a story reminiscent of Pan’s Labyrinth.

To discuss only the locations and the aesthetic beauty of The Fall would be, in my opinion, a disservice to the film as a whole. For the aesthetics are only the ingredients and are not quite enough to get a Tarsem Singh film to the finish line. This was most evident in his latest film Immortals. A film generally considered ‘nice to look at with no emotional investment’. The Fall on the other is not about the visual flair. The visuals just add to the story, just as a visual effect should.

The core of the film is in the relationship between Roy, the stuntman who may never walk again and Alexandria, a seven-year-old girl with a broken arm who has just lost her home and her father. They share a story that begins as a way of manipulating the little girl into doing favours for him. Through this story more and more of his personal story of recovery and his feelings come through. What makes this work so well is that the chemistry between Lee Pace (Pushing Daisies) and the adorable new comer Catinca Untaru feels genuine.

Similar to the recent Hugo and The Artist, Roy is a relic of the silent film era. Just as George Melies (Hugo) and George Valentin (The Artist) are saved from their emotional wounds Roy is saved by Alexandria. A little girl that is unaware of the ritual of sharing her bread with Roy. When Roy asks if she is trying save him by sharing holy bread, she has no idea what he is talking about. He attempts to explain what the nuns use Holy Bread for. It is these moments of affection that move this film beyond a work of aesthetic beauty and create a film of emotional reverence.

I find it hard to believe that this film is only now just finding its way into cinemas and to Australian DVD retailers. I actually bought the Blu Ray four years ago on import from Amazon as a blind purchase. It has since become my favourite demo disc for my home theatre system. The scene with the Elephant on Butterfly Island is one of my favourite things to show people. Seeing this at The Astor in a 4k digital print was beyond anything I ever imagined. I highly recommend seeing this at The Astor, but if you cannot wait that long I suggest getting the Blu Ray. It definitely stands up to and benefits from repeat viewing.