tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77711798047567134642024-03-28T03:44:10.938-07:00Movies Ate My LifeMovie, music and TV reviews by Matt Neal, a Rotten Tomatoes-accredited ABC Radio film critic (also an author, musician, journalist and all-round okay guy).DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.comBlogger595125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-26108560897002523972024-03-19T04:03:00.000-07:002024-03-19T04:03:33.848-07:00Damsel<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on March 21, 2024.</i><br /><br /><b>(M) ★★★<br /><br /></b><div><b>Director: Juan Carlos Fresnadillo.<br /><br />Cast: Millie Bobby Brown, Ray Winstone, Angela Bassett, Robin Wright, Brooke Carter, Nick Robinson, Shohreh Aghdashloo.</b></div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTC5wccwzFztnQb87t31Qc3gZuj3qWVEdk7Tp5s_7DkX7aNVSCgo4CUZlZu-6JArRs8BdLPaCozqn_BRjjdtbRwbjRohQJq6k91wPyF3HfTnXbtktSumFx8R9azKj6MgdmINdg4tuyKmV_sT0SIYGCxh0Y_ZbLZ75XGMKNV85kl6sWNJ2UlavtR3nm6WQ/s3000/damsel.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1688" data-original-width="3000" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTC5wccwzFztnQb87t31Qc3gZuj3qWVEdk7Tp5s_7DkX7aNVSCgo4CUZlZu-6JArRs8BdLPaCozqn_BRjjdtbRwbjRohQJq6k91wPyF3HfTnXbtktSumFx8R9azKj6MgdmINdg4tuyKmV_sT0SIYGCxh0Y_ZbLZ75XGMKNV85kl6sWNJ2UlavtR3nm6WQ/w400-h225/damsel.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"M'lady, your scaffolding is showing!"</td></tr></tbody></table><br />What if the Knight In Shining Armour didn't rescue the Damsel In Distress, and said Damsel had to do her own arse-kicking?<div><br /></div><div>That's the central premise of this surprisingly brutal revisionist fairy tale, which flips a bunch of fantasy tropes on their heads and gives us a dragon-battling heroine who definitely doesn't need a Prince Charming to save the day.</div><div><br /></div><div>Brown is the titular princess, married off to a handsome prince (Robinson) to save her people, but who finds that wedded bliss is fleeting thanks to a hungry dragon with a taste for royal blood (the actual blood of royalty, not <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jhgVu2lsi_k" target="_blank">the band</a>).</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/iM150ZWovZM?si=UXaOJWS2l__ezML8" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><div><br /></div><div>There's not a lot going on in this fractured fairy tale, but what it does, it does well. Even though the End of Act I Twist is visible from a mile away, the film doesn't take too long getting to it, and from there <i>Damsel</i> straps on its sword and rides into the breach with conviction and a single-mindedness that's impressive. It's only when the film drifts into imagined flashbacks and impossible knowledge that things get off the track, but for the most part it sticks to flipping the script on ye olde Damsel In Distress cliche, and makes it work.</div><div><br /></div><div>Brown more than holds her own as the resourceful princess unwilling to go down without a fight. The script doesn't make her out to be superhuman, and Brown imbues her with the right mix of determination and fragility. In a fantastical world, she remains believable and empathetic. </div><div><br /></div><div>She's the shining light in a strong cast, with Winstone, Wright and Bassett all doing well with what are essentially bit parts in Millie Bobby Brown Versus The Dragon. As for the Dragon, voiced with menace by Aghdashloo, she's an interesting character. The CG is occasionally ropey, which is a let down, but at least it doesn't come off as yet another Smaug clone.</div><div><br /></div><div>But that's the point here - to not do the things the other fantasy stories do. Somehow it still feels familiar, and the story is either thin or focussed, depending on how you look at it, but it works. <i>Damsel</i> certainly isn't the first film to flip a fairy tale with a feminist rewrite - <i>Tangled</i> and <i>Frozen</i> come to mind - but it does it in a way that is satisfying and true to its intentions. There's certainly a lot more third-degree burns and charred corpses in this one, too.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Damsel</i> isn't going to win any awards, but there are far worse fantasy films out there.</div></div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-45095098223667105802024-03-19T02:50:00.000-07:002024-03-19T02:50:17.510-07:00Poor Things<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on March 7, 2024.<br /></i><br /><b>(MA15+) ★★★★★<br /><br />Director: Yorgos Lanthimos.<br /><br />Cast: Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, Christopher Abbott, Suzy Bemba, Jerrod Carmichael, Kathryn Hunter, Vicki Pepperdine, Margaret Qualley, Hanna Schygulla.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4avypW4MzmNh6JwdCSriplgMJ6fDPxLi5UfbXI-AIaTCAsVEMheuzBnVpWczfcRgGYDVFNmqNW70IYXbkHMJLYSCm6rY2kCILAId_1TdPf2gR8T6HxbtRWrh3s-ylWoZaNEnbYqU7dd_9emIwbT741z12g9NyGpES2usvimMP9G8XX49TrdbVCKWmpSQ/s3576/poor%20things.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2158" data-original-width="3576" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4avypW4MzmNh6JwdCSriplgMJ6fDPxLi5UfbXI-AIaTCAsVEMheuzBnVpWczfcRgGYDVFNmqNW70IYXbkHMJLYSCm6rY2kCILAId_1TdPf2gR8T6HxbtRWrh3s-ylWoZaNEnbYqU7dd_9emIwbT741z12g9NyGpES2usvimMP9G8XX49TrdbVCKWmpSQ/w400-h241/poor%20things.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"But why does the Lion not simply eat Dorothy?"</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Way back in the early days of this millennium when I was a wee cadet journalist, one of the elder journos, who was always ready with a useful piece of advice, warned me off using the word "unique".</div><div><br /></div><div>"It's one of the most misused words in journalism," he explained.</div><div><br /></div><div>"It literally means 'one of a kind', so don't use it when you just mean 'different' and 'uncommon' - only use it when something is truly, literally 'unique' and there is nothing else like it."</div><div><br /></div><div>After all these years, I feel I can finally use the word "unique".</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Poor Things</i> is a unique film. </div><div><br /></div><div>It's a steampunk coming-of-age fairy tale, mixed with an occasionally disturbing commentary on the patriarchy and a frequently hilarious exploration of morals and social conventions. It's bizarre, it's laugh-out-loud funny and it's wonderfully weird, yet it's also thought-provoking and confronting. If that's not unique, then I don't know what is, and I fear I will never get to use the word.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Poor Things</i> is the story of Bella (Stone), who is the result of a morally dubious experiment by mad scientist Godwin Baxter (Dafoe). Having spent her entire life inside his lab, Bella is whisked away by a hedonistic cad named Duncan Wedderburn (Ruffalo) and begins a strange journey of self-discovery in a challenging world.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RlbR5N6veqw?si=4legftvHRzheAvp6" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div>There is so much to admire about <i>Poor Things</i>. It often looks and feels like the love child of David Lynch and Terry Gilliam, but that's selling it short. Lanthimos and cinematographer Robbie Ryan give us fish-eye lenses, odd angles, plenty of zooms, pinhole views and every other weird trick they can think of to throw us off balance and show an unfamiliar world in which they can present some sadly familiar problems. It's wonderfully unsettling, and makes the incredible sets and stunning production design even more otherworldly.</div><div><br /></div><div>Equally otherworldly is Stone as Bella. Her journey from infantile naivety to mature self-awareness is strangely powerful and powerfully strange, and Stone never misses a step along the way. It's a physical role, almost robotic in places, but Stone never stops finding the humanity in the absurdity.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ruffalo is also excellent as the bon vivant brought to his knees by Bella. His is an equally flashy performance, and Ruffalo shows off his knack for over-the-top comedy as he chews his absurd accent and the scenery at the same time.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Poor Things</i> is proof that there is room for weirdly wonderful cinema in this world. Fans of Lanthimos already knew this, but his latest gives us heart that such unique and inventive film-making can find a home among a wide audience.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-33969524837540315252024-02-12T02:35:00.000-08:002024-02-12T02:35:41.939-08:00Argylle<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on February 8, 2024.</i><br /><br /><b>(M) ★★★<br /><br />Director: Matthew Vaughn.<br /><br />Cast: Bryce Dallas Howard, Sam Rockwell, Bryan Cranston, Catherine O'Hara, Henry Cavill, Sofia Boutella, Dua Lipa, Ariana DeBose, John Cena, Samuel L. Jackson.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Z2j-_p8rv56_ycijohYmL6ArhKlEoZ6UKZkWTK6cUhEtRqmyV0yiDXlE0l-OvN0mCXcD2AVny8ewbF8ohU4_SEBZW2J8CjRVkB4z8K50ueh6rBTNfeSRDhJf5oEGrXeipeMA82W3gcKXE4GZvNODYA9ZEi2UmjAk-e0tDz5hcITI9AnHmhw4oK40Hlc/s1200/argylle.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="676" data-original-width="1200" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Z2j-_p8rv56_ycijohYmL6ArhKlEoZ6UKZkWTK6cUhEtRqmyV0yiDXlE0l-OvN0mCXcD2AVny8ewbF8ohU4_SEBZW2J8CjRVkB4z8K50ueh6rBTNfeSRDhJf5oEGrXeipeMA82W3gcKXE4GZvNODYA9ZEi2UmjAk-e0tDz5hcITI9AnHmhw4oK40Hlc/w400-h225/argylle.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cat bomb, deployed.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Sometimes a tiny little thing can ruin a movie for you.</div><div><br /></div><div>Maybe it's the casting of a particular actor, or a single plot point, or even the look of a costume or special effect. Maybe it's a single horrible line of dialogue.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the case of <i>Argylle</i>, it's the use of The Beatles song <i>Now And Then</i>.</div><div><br /></div><div>Firstly, I quite like this song. I adore The Beatles, perhaps more than any other band, and I got chills hearing their final single when it was released in November, 2023.</div><div><br /></div><div>But that's the problem - it was released in November, 2023. And the characters in this film, which is presumably set in the present day (nothing tells us otherwise) say that it's their song, because it has soundtracked their life together. Which is impossible.</div><div><br /></div><div>And for some reason, this shits me enormously. Because, let's face it, Vaughn could have chosen any one of a squillion songs released long before 2023, but instead he picked this one. It doesn't matter that it's The Beatles' <i>Now And Then</i> - it could have been Doja Cat's <i>Paint The Town Red</i> and it would have annoyed me just as much. And this incongruous decision stands out like dog's balls, dragging me (and maybe other people) out of this otherwise enjoyable film.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's a small matter, but I really wanted to address it before pointing out that this is an otherwise solid film, very much in the vein of Vaughn's <i>Kingsman</i> movies. It's a hyper-stylised and occasionally absurd spy movie, with a sparkling sense of humour and snappy dialogue, delivered by a strong cast.</div><div><br /></div><div>Yes, it gets bonkers... and then even more bonkers... and then even more bonkers again, and you are either along for the ride or not. Much like Vaughn's direction, there are no half-measures here for the audience.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Argylle</i> is the story of Elly Conway (Howard), a shy spy novelist whose life is saved by real-life spy Aidan (Rockwell), dragging her into a world of espionage that bizarrely mirrors the plots of her books. How is this happening and who can she trust?</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7mgu9mNZ8Hk?si=YsOQZENtAor6oQdF" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div>Howard and Rockwell are great as a kind of screwball couple bouncing from one kinetic action sequence to the next. In between, we see flashes of an under-utilised Cavill as Conway's fictional hero Argylle, while Cranston chimes in as a memorable villain.</div><div><br /></div><div>While obviously not to all tastes, <i>Argylle</i> is ridiculous yet fun. It goes perilously close to jumping the shark so many times and the twists pile on awkwardly but it's half the appeal. Unfortunately it does drag on too long, as if two stories have been wedged together in fear of not getting a sequel greenlit.</div><div><br /></div><div>Some iconic-looking sequences linger in the mind, but so does that poor song choice. In 10-20 years it will make sense, and maybe those iconic-looking sequences will actually be iconic. But for now, this overlong oddity is a flawed minor joy.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-3797043856572848622024-02-04T01:59:00.000-08:002024-02-06T02:03:01.216-08:00REWIND REVIEW: Good Night, And Good Luck (2005)<div><i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on January 25, 2024.</i></div><div><br /></div><div><b>(PG) ★★★★</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Director: George Clooney. </b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Cast: David Strathairn, George Clooney, </b><b>Robert Downey Jr., </b><b>Patricia Clarkson, </b><b>Frank Langella, </b><b>Jeff Daniels, </b><b>Tate Donovan, </b><b>Ray Wise. </b></div><br /><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQO4Y57MCrjQrpbwo5IDbl00xHIzxjGkPfJ2GcJjw5SRakTUlvOYJA9EOagK7LFlViSK5dcyWqfd_ituJckSH8TQcMIn9S_wbKpM1j-eybuS_RwLzjKuszgLTQs26xtlrEGu1m-Nt9yERs-0BG5XvxFh_LM-Vl1el6AMInQxhEOJeP9jqHuxZulphJdYw/s1920/good%20night%20and%20good%20luck.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQO4Y57MCrjQrpbwo5IDbl00xHIzxjGkPfJ2GcJjw5SRakTUlvOYJA9EOagK7LFlViSK5dcyWqfd_ituJckSH8TQcMIn9S_wbKpM1j-eybuS_RwLzjKuszgLTQs26xtlrEGu1m-Nt9yERs-0BG5XvxFh_LM-Vl1el6AMInQxhEOJeP9jqHuxZulphJdYw/w400-h225/good%20night%20and%20good%20luck.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Welcome to <i>America's Most Serious Home Videos</i>...."</td></tr></tbody></table><br />The release of George Clooney's second film as director coincided with the first year of George W Bush's second term as US president. It had been four years since September 11, but Bush's "with us or against us" mentality, characterised in part by the Patriot Act, was still going strong.</div><div><br />It was, once again, a period in recent history when the media was as important as ever. Holding the powerful to account was a key theme in those sunny days before the post-truth present - the difference being that most people seemed to actually care about the truth back then, and relied on the media to get it for them. </div><div><br /></div><div><i>Good Night, And Good Luck</i> was perfectly placed to play that classic card of an old story still being powerful in the present. Digging up the skeletons of McCarthyism and his Red Menace found them in surprisingly good shape, decked out in modern garb. The film's lead character, real-life journalist Edward R Murrow, and his 1950s quest for truth and justice powered by good old-fashioned journalism spoke loud and clear to the good folks of 2005.</div><div><br /></div><div>Just as it speaks to today, or should, if folks were inclined to revisit this smoky black-and-white gem. Murrow's kiss-off, telling a gathering of media types that people get the media they deserve, remains as telling now as it did in 2005, and as it did in 1958.</div><div><br /></div><div><i><b>"This instrument (television) can teach. It can illuminate, and yes, it can even inspire. But it can do so only to the extent humans are willing to do so to those ends. Otherwise, it is merely wires and lights in a box."</b></i><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Clooney knew his message would last, and he never labours it. Instead, he focused on making the most succinct and direct film of his career. It's just 90 minutes long, even with a superfluous b-plot romance, and snatches of jazz band performances and commercials to engrain us in the era. It rarely leaves the confines of the CBS TV studio and its offices. The home life of its characters is rarely seen or spoken of aside from the b-plot romantics. It's a contained time capsule that ticks away as a battle of wits, a tribute to journalistic courage, and, most of all, a morality play.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1Qg9ZahBu8c?si=oYC3mxipnXcx0Dnp" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div>In between the ads for cigarettes and aluminium, and the jazz interludes, visible amid the relentless smoking, is a series of wonderfully quiet performances. The most bombastic is Langella, who's incredibly restrained for a media mogul.</div><div><br /></div><div>Everyone is great, but Strathairn is the greatest. The bulk of the acting nominations for <i>Good Night, And Good Luck</i> went to him and rightfully so. It's one of those fantastically internal performances. A tilt of an eyebrow, the curl of a lip, the tap of a foot - these moments hold multitudes, and Clooney rarely lingers on them, just capturing them long enough for us to know. </div><div><br /></div><div>Along with his cinematographer Robert Elswit and editor Stephen Mirrione, Clooney captures the characters and the newsroom in an artful and beautiful way. The camera roves and wanders, but it also sits and listens. It highlights quiet moments, but also drinks up the overlapping dialogue and the newsroom bustle. </div><div><br /></div><div>It also has just enough tension in places to stir the pot. News of the death of a colleague is whispered, then revealed later. The journos and producers sit in silence, thinking they're in the clear after a particularly controversial broadcast, then realise the phones are still diverted. </div><div><br /></div><div><i>Good Night, And Good Luck</i> belongs in the pantheon of great movies about journalism. It's quieter, subtler than <i>All The President's Men</i> and <i>Spotlight</i>, but its subject matter is just as important and its delivery is just as fitting. </div><div><br /></div><div>It's only that b-plot romance that lets it down, plus the occasional sense that the stakes aren't high enough, or that the personal toll on Murrow isn't being felt. That romance, while beautifully played by Clarkson and a rebounding Downey Jr., feels utterly redundant, despite obliquely tapping into the themes of secrecy. </div><div><br /></div><div>Clooney has some good films under his belt as director - Confessions Of A Dangerous Mind, Ides Of March and the under-rated Leatherheads for example - but this is his tightest and most powerful.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-36177734088812747512024-01-31T02:54:00.000-08:002024-01-31T02:54:35.241-08:00The records broken in triple j's 2023 Hottest 100 <div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz2jml0GzZSd01-K_ltdB0o6GT_QBScyp6rgqFxKgLx42sKj4Z3HM2CMOOkp-ikH7tH2o3gk8DEF09YTJ6c0LuSMXty6XgaPxMwMB1o0bqQzSNf3II8v7YB2R3eszYBlw_OXjGQJKiBa2V-Wy8z5ILwuy-B0FOsawKyqazGLQApKZt8X166kJ8zQmV7dU/s1280/padam%20padam.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz2jml0GzZSd01-K_ltdB0o6GT_QBScyp6rgqFxKgLx42sKj4Z3HM2CMOOkp-ikH7tH2o3gk8DEF09YTJ6c0LuSMXty6XgaPxMwMB1o0bqQzSNf3II8v7YB2R3eszYBlw_OXjGQJKiBa2V-Wy8z5ILwuy-B0FOsawKyqazGLQApKZt8X166kJ8zQmV7dU/w400-h225/padam%20padam.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><br />Another year, another Hottest 100. There have been 31 annual countdowns to date, and each one brings new songs, new records, and new things to talk about.<div><br /></div><div>triple j has been talking about a couple of really big records that got broken on the weekend, but it also missed a few. So here's a deep dive into all the records (that I could find) that got broken, extended and equalled on January 27.</div><div><br /></div><div>Let's start with the obvious ones before we dig a little deeper.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Most songs in a single countdown</h3><div>Seven songs in a single Hottest 100 seemed impossible, partly because Wolfmother's record of six in 2005 stood for so long, but mostly because splitting an artist's vote across so many songs is unfathomable. Then Spacey Jane equalled Wolfmother in 2022, and now G Flip has gone one better with seven tracks. Their magic numbers were #2, #22, #24, #26, #50, #65, and #80. Will this record ever be bettered or equalled? I can't see it happening, but then I was wrong about Wolfmother's record of six.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EKitoJhWgCg?si=apHr5ABfbPyX0jko" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Highest finish by a woman of colour/female rapper</h3><div>Doja Cat's win was another victory for diversity. She bettered Eliza Rose's second place in 2022 as the highest finish by a woman of colour, and surpassed Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion's sixth place in 2020 for highest finish by a female rapper. Doja Cat is also only the second solo woman to win (after Billie Eilish in 2019) and only the second African-American to win (after Kendrick Lamar in 2017).</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/m4_9TFeMfJE?si=IancC9Zg0CnfVa4j" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Biggest gap between appearances</h3><div>Kylie Minogue last showed up in the Hottest 100 in 1997, with <i>Did It Again</i> at #81. When <i>Padam Padam</i> landed at #48, it had been 26 years between Hottest 100 drinks for Australia's Queen of Pop. It blitzes the 19-year gap produced by Slipknot when they returned to the countdown in 2019 with <i>Unsainted</i> at #86. It's hard to see this record getting broken any time soon - once you're off the triple j playlist, it takes something truly remarkable to get you back on there.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/p6Cnazi_Fi0?si=jWCYIuO1n_GJvs9i" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Longest Hottest 100 career</h3><div>Kylie's return also saw her equal a record set by Damon Albarn in 2022. Albarn first appeared in the Hottest 100 with his band Blur in 1993 (<i>For Tomorrow</i>, #90) and most recently appeared in 2022 with Gorillaz (<i>New Gold</i>, #13). Kylie equalled that 30-year span with <i>Padam Padam</i>, as her first appearance was back in 1994 with <i>Confide In Me</i> (#30).</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/PxZkjq9z5wg?si=LhWsCdzTXeBevxCI" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Oldest woman </h3></div><div>I will stand corrected on this one, but for four songs on Saturday, Kylie held another record - oldest woman to make it into the Hottest 100. To the best I can figure out, the record was previously held by Marianne Faithful, who was 51 when she featured on Metallica's <i>The Memory Remains</i> in 1997 (#38). Kylie is 55. But her grip on the trophy was shortlived. Madonna's appearance alongside The Weeknd and Playboi Carti on the track <i>Popular</i> (#43) saw Madge swoop in and take the prize - the Material Girl is 65 years old.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xnvkStb2jT0?si=SZBNl7GKRv7thrzP" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Most appearances in Hottest 100 history</h3><div>As everyone knows, Hilltop Hoods surpassed Foo Fighters and Powderfinger last year to become the most successful act in the history of the Hottest 100. Their appearance in the 2023 countdown (<i>Laced Up</i>, #37) gives them 25 appearances in the countdown (triple j only have them on 24 because they don't count their featured spot with Thundamentals' <i>21 Grams</i> in 2017). That's a new record, either way you look at it. Interestingly, G Flip's massive haul moves them into the top five of all time, with 21 appearances (including two featured appearances triple j doesn't count).</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Nn-kfXCQt6A?si=jY2EtrMpVrNbjzsQ" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Most countdowns</h3><div>Hilltop Hoods dominance not only saw them extend their lead on the overall leaderboard, but moved them clear of Foo Fighters for another record - most countdowns appeared in. Both bands were tied on 13, but the Hoodies' latest appearance gives them 14.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/X_rTTsZZ9KE?si=PY8rQginlq9pYfRm" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">The most wrong Warm Tunas has ever been</h3><div>I don't mean this as a dig - I love 100 Warm Tunas and find it invaluable for catching up on a year's worth of music in the lead-up to every Hottest 100. But it's fascinating to note just how off the social media aggregator was this year. In its early calculations, Warm Tunas had boygenius' <i>Not Strong Enough</i> winning the countdown, before settling it into #2 behind Troye Sivan's <i>Rush</i>. <i>Not Strong Enough</i> finished #30, while predicted winner <i>Rush</i> was #8. <i>Paint The Town Red</i> was predicted to place at #9. Never has the aggregator been so wrong - it's predicted the winner in the past three countdowns and has only been wrong twice, and even then it was only out by a couple of positions on the actual and predicted winners. </div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-65984802465037747722024-01-20T21:30:00.000-08:002024-01-20T21:36:48.111-08:00Who will win triple j's Hottest 100 of 2023?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHE2ZNialNYMHfLk1TMEfEwOTVIIgVRsbHYU4kP82R5QKZVqGLXjz18yq-TL2OOm9iNPrqogiFPGX-ZlQcnOb5rl0yR5zBeAVzBwzyOpeiADzlQAaxHvOPsGOvemvqtlHcnuJzuZYoFLr1xciUmGfEYj4Q5cG7s4GnFNARCxZ4jaraiP3HwPENGL-p8fM/s278/troye%20sivan.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="181" data-original-width="278" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHE2ZNialNYMHfLk1TMEfEwOTVIIgVRsbHYU4kP82R5QKZVqGLXjz18yq-TL2OOm9iNPrqogiFPGX-ZlQcnOb5rl0yR5zBeAVzBwzyOpeiADzlQAaxHvOPsGOvemvqtlHcnuJzuZYoFLr1xciUmGfEYj4Q5cG7s4GnFNARCxZ4jaraiP3HwPENGL-p8fM/w400-h260/troye%20sivan.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Before I basically copy and paste the intro from previous blogs (<a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2023/01/who-will-win-triple-js-hottest-100-of.html" target="_blank">I do this every year, folks</a>), a quick note to shout out <a href="https://melbournebooks.com.au/products/shoulda-been-higher-a-celebration-of-30-years-of-triple-j-s-hottest-100" target="_blank">Tom W Clarke's excellent book <i>Shoulda Been Higher</i></a>, which celebrates 30 years of triple j's Hottest 100. <br /><br />Yes, he uses the term "folk" when he means "roots" or "singer-songwriter" or even "acoustic pop", but I can absolutely overlook this for his stellar research, insightful analysis, and the bit where he calls Jet the <i>Avatar</i> of rock music (immensely popular but no cultural influence whatsoever). <br /><br />He also highlights some of the great songs that surprisingly missed the countdown over the years, much like this <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2018/12/the-hottest-100-songs-that-missed.html" target="_blank">massive undertaking where myself, Tyler Jenke and Patrick Avenell compiled the definitive list of the Hottest 100 omissions</a>.<br /><br />The book reminded me I'm not the only nerd who loves the absolute shit out of triple j's Hottest 100. Much like Christmas, it's an occasion that brings people together to argue and drink too much, but with the greatest gift of all - quantifiable statistics about music.<div><br /></div><div>The 2023 countdown is on January 27, and will once again deliver what triple j listeners deem to be the best songs of the past year, creating a musical time capsule for decades to come. </div><div><br /></div><div>Can we predict the winner? Well, <a href="https://100warmtunas.com/" target="_blank">100 Warm Tunas</a> can - it's been right five out of seven times since Nick Whyte set up his social media-scraping countdown predicter, including the last three Hottest 100s.</div><div><br /></div><div>Every year I write this blog, calculating the likelihood and unlikelihood of the some of the hot favourites winning the poll by taking into account Warm Tunas and other factors - the bookies, the ARIA charts, and Spotify and YouTube plays. What's interesting is that the ARIA charts are becoming increasingly <i>unimportant</i>, while TikTok has become increasingly <i>important</i>, though it's hard to find figures to fully quantify how far a song has truly spread across TikTok, so for now it's a missing stat.</div><div><br /></div><div>Meanwhile, 100 Warms Tunas' increasing accuracy - Whyte has been <a href="https://100warmtunas.com/news/2023/01/ml-model-result-adjustment/" target="_blank">using machine learning (ML) to improve his algorhythm</a> - means this blog is increasingly redundant. But who knows? Maybe some people really do read this in order to sound like they know what they're talking about at a Hottest 100 party.</div><div><br /></div><div>So let's do it, shall we? </div><div><br /></div><div>All stats/odds correct at the time of publishing.</div><div><br /></div><div>And remember - <a href="https://gamblershelp.com.au/" target="_blank">gamble responsibly</a>.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><i>Rush</i> - Troye Sivan</b></h3><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/b53QJYP-lqY?si=O9fDgAf6GxulkYxp" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #1</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #1</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $5 (third favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $4 (third favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: #12</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 208m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 26m</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win: </b>According to this data crunch, <i>Rush</i> was <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/triplej/comments/188v597/the_top_100_most_played_and_popular_triple_j/" target="_blank">one of the most popular and most played songs on triple j last year</a>. It's also the most streamed Aussie contender, and Aussies have won seven of the last 10 annual Hottest 100. <i>Rush</i> has also been massive on TikTok, and cracked the ARIA top 20, so it has that all important mainstream crossover. triple j has finally caught on to Sivan, having left him off their playlists for the past decade, but now he fits exactly into the youth station's increasingly inclusive and pop-friendly remit. And with triple j being poppier than ever, this is arguably the perfect pop song of 2023.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it won't win: </b>The punters aren't convinced - both Sportsbet and TAB have two songs at shorter odds. You could also make a case that this is too poppy to win (Flume's winners had a harder electro edge to them) and that Sivan is too popular. And if mainstream pop is gonna take out top spot, can he really compete with the likes of Doja Cat and Olivia Rodrigo? Factor in that Troye Sivan isn't even in the top 50 most played artists on triple j this year, and maybe the buzz around <i>Rush</i> isn't all that.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><i>Not Strong Enough</i> - boygenius</b></h3><div><b><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><b><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/bIX_ouNJsTs?si=n9XdKnhA59Z5MCb6" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></b></div></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #2</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #2</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $23 (ninth favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $8 (fourth favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: N/A</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 76m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 3.8m</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win: </b>An amazing song off a truly great album. Sadly, triple j didn't do an album of the year poll for 2023, though <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/triplej/comments/18fp28v/rtriplejs_2023_album_poll_results/" target="_blank">this unofficial one puts boygenius' <i>the record</i> at #3</a> (and Double J's team put it at #7 for what it's worth). A legit poll might've even had it higher. Warm Tunas really likes this, even accounting for its Machine Learning, which typically downgrades rock/guitar tracks. Even the bookies don't mind it (especially TAB), though its odds on Sportsbet have been lengthening over the past week. Could this be the first all-female band to win the Hottest 100? It certainly deserves to be.</div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it won't win: </b>This would be the rockiest track since Kings Of Leon's <i>Sex On Fire</i> took out the poll in 2008. Yes, Ocean Alley and The Rubens have one since them, but this feels closer to rock and/or roll - something that doesn't win Hottest 100s these days. And boygenius, for all their love and hype, haven't got the same mainstream/TikTok/chart appeal as a lot of other stuff on this list. It's also worth noting that early calculations by Warm Tunas had this song winning, but it has faded slightly.</div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><i>What Was I Made For?</i> - Billie Eilish</b></h3><div><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cW8VLC9nnTo?si=Pj4HoxUzQsg-tiOF" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #8</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #4</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $21 (equal seventh favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $21 (equal 14th favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: #1</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 580m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 97m</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win: </b>Nothing conquered 2023 quite like Barbie, and Billie Eilish was along for the ride with this existential (<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mewdcHIvMmA" target="_blank">and surprisingly complex</a>) piano ballad. It spent three weeks at the top of the ARIA charts, cracked half a billion Spotify streams, and struck a chord with millions. Warm Tunas' machine learning boosts it significantly, Sportsbet punters rate it highly, but more importantly, Eilish has great Hottest 100 form. She's the only solo female artist to win the countdown, and she's the only artist to make the top 10 four years running (2018-2021), and she's appeared in the last six Hottest 100s. Could Eilish join Flume and Powderfinger in the Two-Time Winners Club?</div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> There's never been a winner that sounds even remotely like <i>What Was I Made For?</i>. And while there's a first time for everything, it's hard to picture a Hottest 100 concluding on such a downer. </div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><i>Rumble</i> - Skrillex, Fred Again... & Flowdan</b></h3><div><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/i8Vgo5S-_NM?si=sxrCH3EYloSx4maE" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #3</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #3</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $26 (equal 10th favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $15 (eighth favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: #32</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 111m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 1.9m</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win: </b>One of three electronic tracks that peaked on the ARIA charts at #32 that are expected to do well - spooky. <i>Rumble</i>'s got big Spotify numbers, bigger than Kylie even, and Fred Again... was the most played artist on triple j this year. Oh, and Skrillex was the third most played. Warm Tunas like this and has three Fred Again... songs in the top 30, after he posted four in last year's countdown. He's on a roll.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it won't win: </b>The punters don't seem to like it, and it doesn't seem to have crossed into the mainstream like some of the other likely ones. Fred Again... and Skrillex are also in danger of splitting their vote - between them they have nine songs in the voting guide, partly due to Skrillex releasing two albums in two days in February last year.</div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><i>Rhyme Dust</i> - MK & Dom Dolla</b></h3><div><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DoU6DAcL1_M?si=FmwbmRVUiEHHd6I0" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #4</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #5</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $2.50 (second favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $3.50 (second favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: #32</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 85m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 1m</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win: </b>Lots of money being put on this one, and a lot of hype around Dom Dolla, the Aussie DJ making headway in the US. He was in the top 25 most played artists on triple j this year, and this has the same kinda vibes as Eliza Rose & Interplanetary Criminal's <i>Baddest of Them All</i> and Fisher's <i>Losing It</i>, both of which came in at #2 in 2022 and 2018 respectively. Maybe it's time for house music to take the top prize.</div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> This kind of club banger has never won - the best they usually do is place second (see above). And that's what the bookies seem to think will happen. Warm Tunas doesn't even think it will get that high. And am I the only one who thinks this song is very meh?</div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><h3><b><i>Padam Padam</i> - Kylie Minogue</b></h3><div><b><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><b><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/p6Cnazi_Fi0?si=KtGPtmk6p9Gu2-C-" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></b></div></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #13</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #9</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $91 (equal 22nd favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: </b><b>$21 (14th favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: #19</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 106m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 23m</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win:</b> How great would it be if Kylie won? She last appeared in the countdown in 1997 with <i>Did It Again</i>, which was her third Hottest 100 appearance. If she evens make it into the countdown, it will be the longest gap between appearances (beating Slipknot's 19-year absence). And while it seems unlikely on the face of the data - bookies have her top 20, Warm Tunas top 10 - there's hopefully an undercurrent of wishful thinking that will get Kylie across the line. Now that triple j is so pop-oriented, who better to win the Hottest 100 than Australia's Queen of Pop?</div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it won't win: </b>Wikipedia called <i>Padam Padam</i> "a social media viral phenomenon" and noted it "received critical acclaim from music critics" but neither thing is enough to get Kylie across the line. Of the sub-three-minute pop songs here, which is going to be a bigger hit with the kids - <i>Rush</i> or <i>Padam Padam</i>? </div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><h3><b><i>Paint The Town Red</i> - Doja Cat</b></h3><div><b><br /></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/m4_9TFeMfJE?si=QP2b8eQJgoyb_dm2" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #15</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #10</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $1.83 (favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $1.65 (favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: #1</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 778m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 173m</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win: </b>This could be the pop-rap song that eats them all. It spent 10 weeks at #1 on the ARIA charts, and 20 weeks in the top 10. It has more Spotify streams and YouTube plays than anything else here, and the bookies love it. Doja Cat was the 21st most played artist on triple j this year and this <u><i>Walk On By</i></u>-sampling track was the 12th most played/most popular song on the youth network (<a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/triplej/comments/188v597/the_top_100_most_played_and_popular_triple_j/" target="_blank">according to this metric</a>) in 2023. She also had five tracks in the 2021 countdown, so she's got form.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it won't win: </b>On paper, everything looks set for a win for <i>Paint The Town Red</i>, except that its Warm Tunas rating is so low. Even with machine learning, it only bumps to 10th. This could be the key factor that sinks this otherwise unbackable favourite.</div></div><h3><b><br /></b><b><i>The Worst Person Alive</i> - G Flip</b></h3><div style="text-align: center;"><b><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/EKitoJhWgCg?si=dZ12X0RCIhBQlCVe" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><br /></b></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #11</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #11</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $13 (fourth favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $12 (fifth favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: N/A</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 6m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 475,000</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win: </b>As mentioned previously, there was no album of the year poll at triple j this year (probably because of Richard Kingsmill's sudden exit) but G Flip's <i>Drummer</i> would've been a contender for #1. They've had 12 songs in the countdown over the past five years, including two top 10 finishes (and a #11 last year). There is a lot of goodwill out there for G Flip, despite <i>Drummer</i> being under-appreciated at the ARIA awards. And with seven songs in the voting guide, maybe this is the one to get G Flip a much deserved #1.</div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> While the odds are surprisingly short, it would be a massive upset if <i>The Worst Person Alive</i> won. As popular as G Flip is in the triple j sphere (13th most played artist on the station, and discovered via Unearthed), they've not fully crossed into the mainstream, despite a #1 ARIA album and appearance at the AFL Grand Final. Compare G Flip to Troye Sivan and Doja Cat, and it doesn't look like <i>The Worst Person Alive</i> can get across the line. Which is sad.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div></div><div><br /></div><div><i>And here are some other songs destined to do well:</i></div><div><b><br /></b></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><u><i>Green Honda</i> - BENEE</u></b></h3><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #12</b></div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #6</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $67 (equal 17th favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $19 (11th favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: N/A</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 8m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 816,000</b></div><div><br /></div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><u><i>Therapy</i> - Budjerah</u></b></h3><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #9</b></div><div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #7</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $51 (15th favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $41 (21st favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: N/A</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 12m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 452,000</b></div><div><b></b></div></div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b><b><u><i>adore u</i> - Fred Again... & Obongjayar</u></b></h3><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #14</b></div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #8</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $15 (fifth favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $13 (sixth favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: #41</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 79m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 221,000</b></div><div><br /></div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><b><br /></b></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;"><u><i>(It Goes Like) Nanana</i> - Peggy Gou</u></h3><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #17</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #17</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $26 (equal 10th favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: </b><b>$19 (11th favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: #32</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 339m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 17m</b></div><div><br /></div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><u><i>vampire</i> - Olivia Rodrigo</u></h3><div><br /></div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #18</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #16</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: </b><b>$21 (equal seventh favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $14 (seventh favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: #1 </b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 698m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 85m</b></div><div><br /></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><u><i>Letting Go</i> - Angie McMahon</u></h3><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #7</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #12</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: $151 </b></div><div><b>TAB: $101</b></div><div><b>ARIA: N/A</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 3.6m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 259,000</b></div><div><br /></div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><u><i>Back On 74</i> - Jungle</u></h3><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #6</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #13</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: </b><b>$101 </b></div><div><b>TAB: N/A</b></div><div><b>ARIA: N/A</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 82m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 18m</b></div><div><br /></div></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><u><i>Leaving The Light</i> - Genesis Owusu</u></h3><div><br /></div><div><div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (without ML): #5</b></div><div><b>100 Warm Tunas (with ML): #14</b></div><div><b>Sportsbet: </b><b>$51 (equal 15th favourite)</b></div><div><b>TAB: $17 (ninth favourite)</b></div><div><b>ARIA: N/A</b></div><div><b>Spotify streams: 2.1m</b></div><div><b>YouTube plays: 620,000</b></div><div><br /></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><br /></div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-8009034563353622202024-01-08T03:50:00.000-08:002024-01-10T04:31:27.776-08:00GIG REVIEW: mclusky - Corner Hotel, Melbourne, January 2, 2024<b>mclusky<br />Corner Hotel, Melbourne<br />January 2, 2024</b><div><b><br /></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5MOLlSfPMHnBEdDNxvKyE5CSgJ4q3buAVZ8FFC3gMR41eRNvXmuaHCUML058pFEuiFy5lttRGDjmrjeYU2WafO-mQK19DsjFm_1uOdJl8qhG7BI1HZIcKTtXY8305SvZs07OnVNR-eKoYynGpw9OTtYDgvrhI1t69Z_jEood91edi-2Ezg-Bt3C5Z01k/s4032/IMG_6398.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5MOLlSfPMHnBEdDNxvKyE5CSgJ4q3buAVZ8FFC3gMR41eRNvXmuaHCUML058pFEuiFy5lttRGDjmrjeYU2WafO-mQK19DsjFm_1uOdJl8qhG7BI1HZIcKTtXY8305SvZs07OnVNR-eKoYynGpw9OTtYDgvrhI1t69Z_jEood91edi-2Ezg-Bt3C5Z01k/w400-h300/IMG_6398.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div>Last time iconic Welsh punk band<b>*</b> mclusky played in Melbourne, frontman Andrew "Falco" Falkous was <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2020/02/gig-review-mclusky-corner-hotel.html" target="_blank">pretty sure it was the last time we'd see the reunited band in Australia</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>(<b>*</b>You have to describe mclusky thusly every time you write about them.)</div><div><br /></div><div>Thank fuck he was wrong, because mclusky remain a special proposition - they're a hardcore punk band that doesn't take itself too seriously yet is serious about being good at what it does, that is as melodic as it is noisy, that is as absurd as it is insightful, that is as abrasive as it is hilarious.</div><div> </div><div>To prevent this blog from being a rerun of the above-linked review of their previous Corner gig in 2020, or to be a do-over of <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/listen/doublej/music-reads/features/mclusky-interview-falco-tinnitus-do-dallas-australian-tour/103147866" target="_blank">this article I wrote for Double J ahead of their Australian tour</a>, I will make this gig review a run-through of the many random thoughts that went through my head while watching them play each song. Also, gig reviews are kind of naff, and I should know cos I've written a few.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="setlistImage" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/mclusky/2024/corner-hotel-melbourne-australia-1bafe1b4.html" target="_blank" title="mclusky Setlist Corner Hotel, Melbourne, Australia 2024"><img alt="mclusky Setlist Corner Hotel, Melbourne, Australia 2024" src="https://www.setlist.fm/widgets/setlist-image-v1?id=1bafe1b4" style="border: 0px;" /></a>
<div><a href="https://www.setlist.fm/edit?setlist=1bafe1b4&step=song">Edit this setlist</a> | <a href="https://www.setlist.fm/setlists/mclusky-4bd6c72e.html">More mclusky setlists</a></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>1. Fuck This Band</b></div><div><br /></div><div>I thought they were gonna play their seminal album <i>mclusky Do Dallas</i> in full, but they're starting with track 7. Ok, cool. They usually start with this song anyway, which always features drummer Jack Egglestone looking bored as fuck while playing the beat. I have a "Fuck This Band" t-shirt which is both the greatest and worst piece of band merch ever because a) it's hilarious yet b) I can't wear it in front of my children or in public or anywhere really except music festivals and I'm too old to go to music festivals.</div><div><br /></div><div>The only place I can wear it is to a mclusky gig, but everyone does that. I prefer to wear a Muse shirt to mclusky gigs, because nobody does that.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>2. Dethink To Survive</b></div><div><br /></div><div>So maybe they're playing <i>Do Dallas</i> in a different order. Makes sense - mclusky are not a band to do things by the book. </div><div><br /></div><div>This song reminds me of this awesome video, because it sort-of explains who the fuck Danny Baker is for those of us who didn't grow up in the UK.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YzSnZ5rz7pE?si=RgSwDnNkObQ05zEB" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>I mentioned this video to Falco, and he said that he hadn't watched it but that Egglestone had mentioned it at rehearsal one day. Falco went on to say that the proposition put forward in it - that mclusky weren't loved by the likes of NME because they didn't look or dress in a certain way - was basically true.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>3. Without MSG I Am Nothing</b> </div><div><br /></div><div>I've given up trying to figure out whether they're playing the whole of <i>Do Dallas,</i> because this song is off their <b>*whisper it*</b> equally awesome third album <i>The Difference Between Me and You Is That I'm Not on Fire.</i></div><div><br /></div><div>This song is so good. I desperately want to know if "everywhere I look is the darkness" refers to an existential threat of some kind of symbolic darkness, or the greater existential threat that is Justin Hawkins' band The Darkness. I suspect the latter.</div><div><br /></div><div>I regret standing this close to the moshpit holding what was half a pint of beer.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1OgRHvRyjwk?si=IwnNAw663lGezzYo" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>4. Collagen Rock</b></div><div><br /></div><div>I really want to know who this song is about.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>5. What We've Learned</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Damien Sayell sings this one. He joined mclusky on bass in 2014, replacing Jon Chapple, leading to the band being called mclusky* or "mclusky" up until at least 2020. Sayell is a fucking unit - he sings this song, rocks an upside-down bass and has been known to stage dive. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>6. Day Of The Deadringers</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Ok, that's three songs in a row from <i>Do Dallas</i>, in the order they appeared on the record. What is going on here?</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDSPY-yVE1q3bJA-4dI50RPLSkkT7a66N9roV0_e3qqnhMQPfHTYll5Djo4NaC990W6MPfJgBSpEeZiTeTC9YNVkTAQR-nptoU3uMJ_Q01_4ls6Y241I58W0kDiaUQhKvUqa3L_NMHREqniKlYdrbJxpiP-gtb3n-8xEEpngdhjvYXSrX-r7rnqMBB6fE/s4032/IMG_6403.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDSPY-yVE1q3bJA-4dI50RPLSkkT7a66N9roV0_e3qqnhMQPfHTYll5Djo4NaC990W6MPfJgBSpEeZiTeTC9YNVkTAQR-nptoU3uMJ_Q01_4ls6Y241I58W0kDiaUQhKvUqa3L_NMHREqniKlYdrbJxpiP-gtb3n-8xEEpngdhjvYXSrX-r7rnqMBB6fE/w300-h400/IMG_6403.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br /><div><b>7. Unpopular Parts Of A Pig</b></div><div><br /></div><div>The first of the new songs and it's a balltearer. Doesn't sound out of place. Falco introduces it by suggesting we go and order a Cinzano if we don't care for the new material. He also takes the piss out of The Libertines for what will not be the last time this evening.</div><div> </div><div><b>8. Lightsabre Cocksucking Blues</b></div><div><br /></div><div>One of the hits. The moshpit is going fucking nuts. It's such a wild song - like, who the hell writes songs like this? It's so great and unlike anything else ever.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>9. Chases</b></div><div><br /></div><div>According to Spotify, this is the least-listened-to song on <i>Do Dallas</i>, which is an absolute travesty. Seriously, the song absolutely rocks, and "Don't go fucking in the barn... 'cos the barn's on fire" is a great set-up and punchline disguised as a lyric. It's also excellent advice.</div><div><br /></div><div>Falco's wife and <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2018/03/an-ode-to-future-of-left.html" target="_blank">Future Of The Left</a> bandmate Julia Ruzicka jumps on the bass for this one, having apparently hassled Falco for 12 months for the opportunity to do so. Sayell sings it and ends up crowdsurfing for much of the song's 90-second duration. It's a highlight of the night. Ruzicka and Sayell both destroy it.</div><div><br /></div><div>Much like they did at this gig:</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/8qp1xzVky3E?si=tMjhX_eJlHBscx6v" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>10. She Will Only Bring You Happiness</b></div><div><br /></div><div>I always forget this song has no bass in it. I never notice until I see them play it live, and Sayell switches his upside-down bass for an upside-down electric guitar. It's a bold move to leave the bass out of a rock song, especially a single. Prince did that with <i>When The Doves Cry</i>, and that's perhaps the only time anyone will ever compare mclusky and Prince.</div><div><br /></div><div>Falco points out the absurdity of the crowd singing along to the outro refrain of "Our old singer is a sex criminal". It's so wrong, it's right. It also makes me wonder how the conversation went where the band agreed to change the lyric to "ex-criminal" for the radio edit.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/3o66g12emwE?si=e7B4ehQ_uKf33kvw" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>11. The Digger You Deep</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Another new one, and another balltearer. It swaggers unlike anything else in the set, and has these beautiful moments where the song hangs on a bent note, dangling out over the edge of a bar, before slamming back into the groove. It sounds like Future Of The Left, which is something you absolutely shouldn't tell Falco - apparently mclusky have already ditched songs from their forthcoming record because they sound more like Future Of The Left than mclusky. But it's a compliment, and let's face it - bits of <i>The Difference Between Me and You Is That I'm Not on Fire</i> totally sound like Future Of The Left. This is a good thing.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>12. Et Tu, Edwards?</b></div><div><br /></div><div>This new song moves at breakneck speed and sounds more mclusky-ish than the other two new ones. The crowd really got into to it.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>13. You Should Be Ashamed, Seamus</b></div><div><br /></div><div>The verse riff in this is one of my all time favourite mclusky riffs - it sounds like something Soundgarden rejected because it was actually too awesome and they were worried people wouldn't be able to handle how awesome it was. And the ending is insane. </div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/L2n6Rrfww4Y?si=eDvFSlbx3-vBlXMr" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div><b>14. To Hell With Good Intentions</b></div><div><br /></div><div>I embarrassed myself when interviewing Falco and called this song "Road To Hell", though I got the title right later in the interview. Idiot. </div><div><br /></div><div>This is the other big hit. I can still remember hearing this for the first time on triple j 21 years ago. The Bill Hicks reference in the first line grabbed me by the earholes, and I instantly fell in love with it.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>15. Rice Is Nice</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Wow this song is at least 24 years old now. Sayell's on the vocals. The only song they're playing from first album.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>16. The Battle Of Los Angelsea </b></div><div><br /></div><div>Another new one, this time with Sayell on vocals. I honestly can't remember much about this one, but I distinctly remember wondering if it was a cover.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>17. Alan Is A Cowboy Killer</b></div><div><br /></div><div>A set highlight. But is Alan a killer of cowboys or a cowboy who kills? Answers in the comments please.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC3bSRqYQhHr3ZpuCxsBCMCbF9U771xm-TktBxb3tA_GElRk6XR50j0r0Ihu5-O3Nda3TrQZRrmOp37Gn-Tieyn5P0mW0CgZ-ikmko_DzvzcnD2hGrFg4VuAf0l_pssRVTAI8Ln2IR0WaUhvh98FNAfwTOcQiAHdjTjDT_5jyYhcUXdG9vFm6urzWjr54/s4032/IMG_6397.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC3bSRqYQhHr3ZpuCxsBCMCbF9U771xm-TktBxb3tA_GElRk6XR50j0r0Ihu5-O3Nda3TrQZRrmOp37Gn-Tieyn5P0mW0CgZ-ikmko_DzvzcnD2hGrFg4VuAf0l_pssRVTAI8Ln2IR0WaUhvh98FNAfwTOcQiAHdjTjDT_5jyYhcUXdG9vFm6urzWjr54/w400-h300/IMG_6397.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><b>18. Gareth Brown Says</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Falco opens this song by asking Julia to ensure their young daughter's ear defenders are on properly, and then reminds said daughter not to repeat anything Daddy says on stage in the playground unless it's really funny. Classic family entertainment, this song.</div><div><br /></div><div>Anyway, the opening lines - "All your friends are cunts/Your mother is a ballpoint pen thief" - always remind me of <a href="https://www.talkhouse.com/andrew-falkous-presents-the-job-interview/" target="_blank">this great piece Falco wrote about a job interview</a> in which this song was brought up.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>19. That Man Will Not Hang</b></div><div><br /></div><div>After a short discussion between Falco and Eggleston (which is made hilariously difficult by Falco's ear defenders), Falco offers the audience a choice for the next song. Someone requests <i>Joy</i>, but Falco dismisses it, saying they were only going to play good songs, and the choice is an actual choice between <i>That Man Will Not Hang</i> and <i>No Covers</i>. We choose <i>That Man Will Not Hang</i>. No regrets.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>20. Whoyouknow</b></div><div><br /></div><div>Falco told me this is the only mclusky song he took into the rehearsal room already written. Amazingly, they only write songs all together in the rehearsal room. I've tried this and it takes fucking forever and no one ever has a good time and the results are usually shit. Though maybe that says more about me than anything. </div><div><br /></div><div>This is a surprisingly good set closer. It's main outro progression is one of those great cycle of chords that feels like it could be played forever.</div><div><br /></div><div>So there you have it. I'm sure that was far from illuminating. Three <i>Do Dallas</i> songs didn't get played (<i>No New Wave No Fun</i>, <i>Clique Application Form</i>, and <i>The World Loves Us And Is Our Bitch</i>, for those of you playing along at home, four if you count the "secret" track <i>Reviewing The Reviewers</i>), but it doesn't really matter does it? Because they played 20 great songs, including four new ones, the 11 best songs off <i>Do Dallas</i>, four songs from their excellent third album, and one from their debut record. </div><div><br /></div><div>Here's hoping they come back with their new album.</div></div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-39629521478543896412023-12-21T03:36:00.000-08:002023-12-21T03:36:24.714-08:00Genie<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on December 7, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(PG) ★★<br /><br />Director: Sam Boyd. <br /><br />Cast: Melissa McCarthy, Paapa Essiedu, Denée Benton, Jordyn McIntosh, Alan Cumming, Marc Maron, Luis Guzman.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpGZzvB0U6QIzKQiPLOvBg5KUMO6JgtyPBqk462MZZ1Uh-y8-tgIy-yaYOwQfsqkhlAK8onnIfgSS_M0nl2qbG5TkgQ8BSYJeMwSANepUKq3ZjBihentDXHVRA9tTFlR_8AuCCtRWS8DBQvF3CLptIwtA1OsVEUPfpgZX6cury_ACWUPiNyMCrHrVfX6o/s1200/genie.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="776" data-original-width="1200" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpGZzvB0U6QIzKQiPLOvBg5KUMO6JgtyPBqk462MZZ1Uh-y8-tgIy-yaYOwQfsqkhlAK8onnIfgSS_M0nl2qbG5TkgQ8BSYJeMwSANepUKq3ZjBihentDXHVRA9tTFlR_8AuCCtRWS8DBQvF3CLptIwtA1OsVEUPfpgZX6cury_ACWUPiNyMCrHrVfX6o/w400-h259/genie.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"A podcast, you say? No way!"</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Michael Mann remade his own telemovie <i>LA Takedown</i> as <i>Heat</i>. Michael Haneke made two versions of his film <i>Funny Games</i>, 10 years apart. Cecil B. Demille filmed <i>The Ten Commandments</i> twice, 33 years apart.</div><div><br /></div><div>It happens more often than you think (<a href="https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/10-directors-who-remade-their-own-films/" target="_blank">here's a cool list with even more examples</a> that I absolutely pilfered for my opening paragraph). Even Hitchcock did it.</div><div><br /></div><div>We can add Richard Curtis to the list. His latest script <i>Genie</i> is an update of his 1991 telemovie <i>Bernard & The Genie</i>, which boasted the immaculate cast of Alan Cumming, Rowan Atkinson, and Lenny Henry (sidenote: Cumming returns, not as the hero this time, but the grumpy boss originally played by Atkinson).</div><div><br /></div><div>In this new version, the titular wish-granter is played by Melissa McCarthy (not Lenny Henry), who is accidentally summoned by overworked museum curator Bernard (Essiedu) just as his wife and daughter are moving out and he loses his job. </div><div><br /></div><div>There are limitations to the Genie's powers, but Bernard will do all he can with his infinite wishes (it's not three in this version) to win his family back and find true happiness... just in time for Christmas.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/cHUimyBo7DM?si=t0cfJ1AenDN6RA4Q" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Genie</i> is like an old car. It takes a long time to warm up, and when it starts moving it's creaky and tired as we go through the rigmarole of yes, the Genie is real, and this is how wishes work. On top of this, McCarthy's Midwest accent doesn't exactly fit with her thousands-of-years-old backstory. The film's first half grates as the story's gears clunk and grind, wobbling all over the road.</div><div><br /></div><div>Around the middle, a subplot involving an unwitting art theft takes the story in a strange yet interesting direction, and things speed up and get moving at a better pace. A midway scene involving Bernard's family getting a real Christmas wish is amusing too, and it helps to gain some goodwill for Bernard and the film itself.</div><div><br /></div><div>Essiedu is also extremely likeable, which helps overcome the flat and lacklustre nature of the script. By the end, there's enough of a spark in proceedings to make it bearable, and the denouement satisfactory. Even McCarthy manages to make her role work - in fact, by the end she seems well suited to it, Midwestern accent not withstanding.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's not great though. The jokes are soft and sparse, and there's no shaking the tiredness of it all - this is the thousandth genie fable, mixed with the thousandth family Christmas comedy-drama. The combination never feels fresh, instead it feels like the most the uninspiring pieces of each part. </div><div><br /></div><div>It's not bad enough to make you wish for your time back, but you won't be adding it to your list of favourite Christmas movies any time soon.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-7640748553196461162023-11-22T02:47:00.000-08:002023-11-22T02:47:04.099-08:00The Marvels<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on November 16, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(M) ★★★½<br /><br />Director: Nia DiCosta.<br /><br />Cast: Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, Samuel L. Jackson, Zawe Ashton, Gary Lewis, Park Seo-joon, Zenobia Shroff, Mohan Kapur, Saagar Shaikh.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOzzd3NDuUeCqzKbs9FPZh2TjxH9cgn6Ujhn7aN5G5F_VRQ6K-_gXByxX864tlp_Oem33In3MlguBzACmREJwmoLYWS31FNYlIPngCmBOC1nv9cwTsPzRATa2maIc2lSyibEPeyaz8wV1dmqnupYBQqSDSchZlT6Vu8eQaouaY1Z8asnTIs-QoZ3Zb5xM/s1800/the%20marvels.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1116" data-original-width="1800" height="248" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOzzd3NDuUeCqzKbs9FPZh2TjxH9cgn6Ujhn7aN5G5F_VRQ6K-_gXByxX864tlp_Oem33In3MlguBzACmREJwmoLYWS31FNYlIPngCmBOC1nv9cwTsPzRATa2maIc2lSyibEPeyaz8wV1dmqnupYBQqSDSchZlT6Vu8eQaouaY1Z8asnTIs-QoZ3Zb5xM/w400-h248/the%20marvels.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hanging out in kids' bedrooms? Not cool, Captain Marvel.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>All the headlines around <i>The Marvels</i> have been about its poor box office performance, which totally ignores how fun and entertaining this film is.</div><div><br /></div><div>The reasons for the flop out of the gates are many, but the main one is surely a lack of promotion thanks to the actors' strike, which dulled the buzz of this worthy addition to the MCU. Had Larson, Parris and Vellani been able to hit the junket tour and showcase the great chemistry they share on screen, then maybe we'd have a different set of headlines.</div><div><br /></div><div>Or maybe it's that now-legendary "superhero fatigue", a term that's been thrown around for the past decade, only to get quickly forgotten when the next amazing superhero movie rolls around.</div><div><br /></div><div>But who cares? Despite its flaws, <i>The Marvels</i> is a hoot, and the kind of good-time superpowered jawn that hopefully stirs up some belated word-of-mouth buzz.</div><div><br /></div><div>It centres on Carol Danvers AKA Captain Marvel (Larson), Ms Marvel (Vellani) and the steadfastly un-nicknamed Monica Rambeau (Parris - but she's Photon right? Or Spectrum?), who find their powers entangled after a run-in with a wormhole phenomena created by alien warrior Dar-Benn. As they investigate further, they discover they're in a race against time to stop Dar-Benn repairing her damaged homeworld at the expense of numerous other worlds, including Earth.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/wS_qbDztgVY?si=-2Ad_v7r0soQp6Dn" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div><i>The Marvels</i> ain't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it's fun, riding high on the interactions of its stars. If you haven't caught Disney+'s <i>Ms Marvel</i> series then you've been missing out on the bubbly delight that is Vellani, who brings her fan girl enthusiasm to all the best lines in the film. Combined with Larson and Parris, the trio make for a welcome delight.</div><div><br /></div><div>Oddly, the film's villain is disappointing despite coming from the wonderful moral grey zone Marvel does so well. Like so many other MCU Big Bad, Dar-Benn believes what she is doing is the right thing (see also Namor, the High Evolutionary, Thanos etc...) and is compelling from that angle, but is sadly unmemorable and lacking in charisma, despite Ashton's best efforts.</div><div><br /></div><div>The action is great, with the "entanglement" of the three Marvels' powers making for some neat CG trickery. The sillier moments are also excellent; better than the emotional beats. The cat-like flerkens are given a hilarious role while a wacky Bollywood-style dance number in the middle is nice, but the relationship between Danvers and Rambeau feels forced.</div><div><br /></div><div>The combination of it all is unwieldy at times, but by-and-large <i>The Marvels</i> works. It's disappointing this film will be written off as an MCU flop because its superior to plenty of other entries in the franchise that fared better at the box office.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-83301671420586359312023-11-06T15:55:00.001-08:002023-11-06T15:55:13.485-08:00Killers Of The Flower Moon<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on November 2, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(M) ★★★½<br /><br />Director: Martin Scorsese.<br /><br />Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Lily Gladstone, Jesse Plemons, Tantoo Cardinal, John Lithgow, Brendan Fraser, Cara Jade Myers, JaNae Collins, Jillian Dion, Jason Isbell, William Belleau, Louis Cancelmi, Scott Shepherd, Everett Waller, Talee Redcorn, Yancey Red Corn, Tatanka Means, Tommy Schultz, Sturgill Simpson, Pete Yorn.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1VPB6HBHzkqhWNGrzmrL8Nqf4ahMBHkRdfR7pnhRde-okW2KL6AhHDD_qQ5Ii3fTHv6mJwaGig-AloBfpXcmPlviayFd1SLC4mQ4qEpSMpXY4N5ckEa6Dba_dar4xGrQV2yxMoTAVew49mvYJnjfmbfX6HhE4023kqTuh21sNufJBMx-7n2XHCt6Znhc/s3000/killers%20of%20the%20flower%20moon.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1687" data-original-width="3000" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1VPB6HBHzkqhWNGrzmrL8Nqf4ahMBHkRdfR7pnhRde-okW2KL6AhHDD_qQ5Ii3fTHv6mJwaGig-AloBfpXcmPlviayFd1SLC4mQ4qEpSMpXY4N5ckEa6Dba_dar4xGrQV2yxMoTAVew49mvYJnjfmbfX6HhE4023kqTuh21sNufJBMx-7n2XHCt6Znhc/w400-h225/killers%20of%20the%20flower%20moon.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Son, can you direct me to the nearest apothecary?"</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Yep, it's long. Like really bloody long. Not quite as long as Scorsese's previous film <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2019/11/the-irishman.html" target="_blank">The Irishman</a>, but that was on Netflix so I could pause it when I needed to go to the toilet. You can't pause a cinema #bringbacktheintermission.</div><div><br /></div><div>But it's good. Like really bloody good. Scorsese's knack for rich, nuanced storytelling that grows in the darker mud of humanity is unrivalled, and it's in full bloom here. Horrible people doing horrible things for horrible reasons, with the tempo dragging out the tension as we hope for comeuppances - yep, this is what Scorsese does well. </div><div><br /></div><div>Based on David Grann's acclaimed non-fiction book of the same name, <i>Killers Of The Flower Moon</i> stars DiCaprio as Ernest Buckhart, a somewhat dim-witted returning WWI veteran who ends up at the ranch of his uncle Bill Hale (De Niro) in Fairfax, Oklahoma. The region is rich with oil, all owned by the Native Americans of Osage County, making for a bizarre situation where the Native Americans have all the wealth, but are still treated like second-class citizens.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ernest falls in love with Mollie Kyle (Gladstone), playing into the hands of his uncle, who aims to take over her family's oil rights by whatever means necessary. </div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7cx9nCHsemc?si=-Cp1qc8yvuKPvUVl" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div>With solid performances all round, a fascinating story, and beautiful cinematography, this is a fine film, as you would come to expect from Scorsese, who hasn't made a bad film since the '90s. Ernest Buckhart is a largely unlikeable doofus committing unseemly crimes, but following him around as it all slowly comes apart is oddly enjoyable, even funny at times, despite the killing and depravity. </div><div><br /></div><div>But the problem really is the length and the pacing. The first two hours, while fascinating, are slow. It is beautiful and haunting at times, punctuated with increasing outbursts of violence, but it takes a long time to get where it's going, and it's really hard to shake the feeling it could have been shorter without sacrificing the beauty and the elegiac nature. </div><div><br /></div><div>Scorsese shows his typical reverence for his material and his subjects, particularly the Native Americans, their rituals, and their plight. He has collected a fine cast, his old friend, the dearly departed Robbie Robertson, delivers a haunting final score, and while the postscript of the film is odd, it demonstrates Scorsese's passion..</div><div><br /></div><div>A long film is only bad when it feels long, and across its first two acts, <i>Killers Of The Flower Moon</i> feels long. But it's still a worthwhile journey, despite it taking a bloody long time to get where it's going.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-54829185182364514412023-11-01T02:53:00.002-07:002023-11-01T02:53:49.616-07:00Beckham<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on October 19, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(M) ★★★</b><b>★</b><b><br /><br />Director: Fisher Stevens.</b><div><b><br /></b></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifucyvmJfM4Tbi2p6ivEBO6W7XGGJcqyO9LZpsD_DVPCPflmBOHaFITFD5ah_PFqPC_LURUnBTVWevv4LTeehEgauywfgamCXtzsbnuEoRTD5-v7QWZedqDYx3PxxU2FWw67EMTZN-vePYw9RHqFUkpP3zqdyO-__vKhWC01oHMwQIEUXrLrEeYLqHPnc/s1920/beckham.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifucyvmJfM4Tbi2p6ivEBO6W7XGGJcqyO9LZpsD_DVPCPflmBOHaFITFD5ah_PFqPC_LURUnBTVWevv4LTeehEgauywfgamCXtzsbnuEoRTD5-v7QWZedqDYx3PxxU2FWw67EMTZN-vePYw9RHqFUkpP3zqdyO-__vKhWC01oHMwQIEUXrLrEeYLqHPnc/w400-h225/beckham.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"And then I kicked another goal. And after that, I kicked another goal...."</td></tr></tbody></table><br />I know this sounds stupid, but the main thing I learnt from this four-part Netflix doco series was how great of a player David Beckham was. I honestly had no idea. I've only ever had a passing interest in soccer, mainly when the Socceroos or Matildas are in the World Cup. </div><div><br /></div><div>Beckham, to me, was a soccer player with a huge profile. He was tabloid fodder. He was married to a Spice Girl. He was good-looking enough to be an occasional model. I figured he must have been a half-decent player, but it never occurred to me he was one of the all-time greats.</div><div><br /></div><div>So from that angle, this doco is fascinating. His rollercoaster career - the highs are remarkable and the lows even more stunning - makes for incredible and surprisingly emotional viewing. When you throw the off-the-pitch stuff into the mix - his romance with Victoria Beckham, the relentless paparazzi, his topsy-turvy relationship with the public - it makes for a heady combination of glamour and glory.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nUVNbJMWi_c?si=c-CBgz9kadXmuoUQ" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div>It would be hard to mess up this treasure trove of content and thankfully Stevens' doesn't. His unrivalled access and all-star cast of talking heads really sell it, capped off by some canny editing by Michael Harte. The deeply personal nature of it all is amplified by moments where interviewees look seemingly right down the barrel to watch replays of football matches, capturing their reactions in intimate detail.</div><div><br /></div><div>This intimacy is evident in the level of control Posh & Becks have over it all. They're using the doco series as therapy - Victoria Beckham admits as much towards the end - but they brush past some things and lean into other moments. The affair allegations get a mention, but its brief and the "other woman" Rebecca Loos is never named, let alone interviewed. The whole thing is only as intimate as the Beckhams will allow, and while it's remarkably candid, it's still somewhat stage-managed.</div><div><br /></div><div>But it's ultimately fascinating, not just as a summation of a remarkable football career, but as a study of tabloid media gone wild. Part-therapy and part-brand reclamation on the part of its subjects, it's nonetheless a riveting insight into a pop culture phenomenon and an intriguing study of sporting prowess.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-4947504067199443932023-10-02T04:19:00.005-07:002023-10-02T04:19:51.306-07:00Cocaine Bear<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on October 5, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(MA15+) ★★★½<br /><br />Director: Elizabeth Banks<br /><br />Cast: Keri Russell, Alden Ehrenreich, O'Shea Jackson Jr., Ray Liotta, Isiah Whitlock Jr., Brooklynn Prince, Christian Convery, Aaron Holliday, Margo Martindale, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Kristofer Hivju, Hannah Hoekstra, Ayoola Smart.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_-D1O1mvBcYy-lwZ-BM_LTzji-C2qskv3nXwusMdjBpoFZ2SA44P2mtwf3UT1mxeF2iZMNnvVPlAsgEHN3SWZ-OWVwhQz0nwHj44WRxoz0zfcKsTb8uQsu6hZRbheWNVWmeXwjhPwFwplK_XQN3XhY2pdgPk3cnhijO3nHo9f-HZavwWmVTXniAh8pbI/s1486/cocaine%20bear.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="836" data-original-width="1486" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_-D1O1mvBcYy-lwZ-BM_LTzji-C2qskv3nXwusMdjBpoFZ2SA44P2mtwf3UT1mxeF2iZMNnvVPlAsgEHN3SWZ-OWVwhQz0nwHj44WRxoz0zfcKsTb8uQsu6hZRbheWNVWmeXwjhPwFwplK_XQN3XhY2pdgPk3cnhijO3nHo9f-HZavwWmVTXniAh8pbI/w400-h225/cocaine%20bear.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cocaine Bear's brother Weed Bear preferred to sleep.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><i>Cocaine Bear</i> is a great bad idea, the kind that happens at 3am after too many edibles, and then you wake up two days later and find you've written a script in a fever dream you don't remember, and the script is <i>Cocaine Bear</i>, and it's not bad, and then you polish it up and it's actually really good, and somehow Elizabeth Banks ends up directing it and you're like "holy shit, Elizabeth Banks, she was great in those <i>Pitch Perfect</i> films and <i>The Hunger Games</i>, and she directed <i>Pitch Perfect 2</i>, which was pretty good, although she was also in and directed part of <i>Movie 43</i>, which is one of the worst movies ever so there's that", but she does a great job directing this film based super loosely on the real life bear that died after eating 34kgs of cocaine that was thrown out of a plane in 1985 and when I say loosely I mean very very loosely, because, like, no one knows anything about what the real Cocaine Bear did before it died though its a pretty safe bet that it talked incessantly at a party and was super annoying and didn't sleep for 36 hours but this movie imagines the bear as a psycho killer, running through the woods of Georgia off its guts on charlie, attacking everyone it comes across, but what's really wild about this movie is that its actually really good, like the script is actually really good because this is basically a B movie right, except it's really well acted and the script gives a few of the characters half-decent arcs so we care about them in between the cavalcade of face-ripping and disembowelling wrought by Ol' Queen Cocaine Bear herself because did I mention this is hella-gory, like you see dudes get their guts ripped out and their heads blown off and someone does a pretty brutal slide along a road and it's messed up and all looks super-convincing, like, even the bear looks pretty good at times, great work Weta, but somehow the film is hilarious and I guess that comes back to that solid script again, which just works, like, it sets a great tone that says "yes, this is batshit crazy, we know its batshit crazy, but sometimes batshit crazy can be good, like, hear me out, what if we treat this shit serious and shit, but, you know, the whole time it's about a bear that's ripped off its tits on candy" and that's what I love about it, because it's really funny and really brutal but it's damned entertaining and it is some high-quality B movie stuff, and holy shit you've gotta see the trailer, here, here, I'll show you, no, right now, here watch this, watch this...</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/DuWEEKeJLMI?si=XsuXBxdmNRscWV6B" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div>...right, like, they got a surprisingly rad cast for it, see, like Keri Russell, remember her from <i>Felicity</i>, but she's been in heaps of stuff since then and she's really good as a mum protecting her daughter and it's like a metaphor for a Mama Bear protecting her cubs, and Ice Cube's son is in it and he played Ice Cube in <i>Straight Outta Compton</i> (isn't that wild?), and his name's O'Shea Jackson Jr, in real life I mean, not in this movie, in this movie he's called Daveed, and Alden Ehrenreich is in it too and he was Han Solo in that <i>Solo</i> spin-off movie and damn that was great and I wish they would make a sequel, oh yeah, and he's in this and he's really good, oh and this is one of Ray Liotta's last movies so there's that, but anyway, this is how you do a B movie properly, 'cos what you do is you lean into the insanity but treat it seriously like 'holy shit that bear just ripped that dude's head off' but the characters are as freaked out as you, and yeah it's kinda dumb in places, but I was surprised by how good it was, so, yeah, there's that.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-78832370355800435682023-09-20T04:15:00.000-07:002023-09-20T04:15:42.766-07:00REWIND REVIEW: The Empire Strikes Back (1980)<div><i>This is part of a series of articles reviewing the Greatest Films Of All Time, as determined by my incredible spreadsheet, <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2022/11/the-greatest-movies-of-all-time.html" target="_blank">which is detailed and regularly updated here</a>.</i></div><div><b><br /></b></div><b>(PG) ★★★★★<br /><br />Director: Irvin Kirschner.<br /><br />Cast: Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Alec Guinness, David Prowse, James Earl Jones, Frank Oz, Peter Mayhew, Billy Dee Williams, Anthony Daniels, Kenny Baker.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9UrExVGHuCxakf3U3BlEDemmpuT3QhIo25dU9Xb4EZY6nNOfNkuJerE-4Tqx-6zKqcfISMHS7K5N8lje4_NyaXTGBUpxm-Hz8VhMJlo8fRpveVtqvDEoK72NLHSjRGm13f68B6AC7D_o-e2m3rJgWLj8VnClz1xeDgd89dlm34qQl7MAQj58ptIDXC84/s1280/vader.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9UrExVGHuCxakf3U3BlEDemmpuT3QhIo25dU9Xb4EZY6nNOfNkuJerE-4Tqx-6zKqcfISMHS7K5N8lje4_NyaXTGBUpxm-Hz8VhMJlo8fRpveVtqvDEoK72NLHSjRGm13f68B6AC7D_o-e2m3rJgWLj8VnClz1xeDgd89dlm34qQl7MAQj58ptIDXC84/s320/vader.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Join me... and together we'll watch every episode of <i>Clone Wars</i>."</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>Why is <i>The Empire Strikes Back</i> considered the best of the Star Wars films?</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://movieweb.com/empire-strikes-best-why-its-the-best-star-wars-movie/#:~:text=The%20Empire%20Strikes%20Back%20is%20praised%20for%20its%20plot%20more,to%20support%20a%20hero's%20journey." target="_blank">Movieweb</a> says it has the best lightsaber duel of the series (really?), and points to the budding romance, the plot, the character development, and the plot twist. <a href="https://thenerdstash.com/10-reasons-why-the-empire-strikes-back-is-the-best-star-wars-movie/" target="_blank">The Nerdstash</a> cites the expansion of the universe, the score, the storyline juggling, the quotable dialogue, Darth Vader at his most menacing, the darkness, that ending, the romance and the character development. <a href="https://reelrundown.com/movies/tenreasonsempirebest" target="_blank">Reel Rundown</a> mentioned all this, the pacing and more.</div><div><br /></div><div>All this is true (except for the bit about the best lightsaber duel), but there's one thing that doesn't get highlighted enough in the discussion around <i>Empire</i>: emotion.</div><div><br /></div><div>The late great Roger Ebert hit on it in 1997 when he noted that it's "because of the emotions stirred in <i>Empire</i> that the entire series takes on a mythic quality that resonates back to the first and ahead to the third". </div><div><br /></div><div>"This is the heart," <a href="https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-empire-strikes-back-1997-1" target="_blank">Ebert wrote</a>.</div><div><br /></div><div>There are a couple of key emotional moments I noticed during my squillionth watching of <i>Empire</i> recently. I was watching it with my seven-year-old, who was on his second viewing, which helped me have fresh eyes on it, highlighting the difference between <i>Empire</i> and <i><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2020/07/afi-13-star-wars-episode-iv-new-hope.html" target="_blank">A New Hope</a></i>. They're just little things, but given the billions of words that have been written about <i>Empire</i> over the years, they struck me as underappreciated yet significant things that haven't been written about enough.</div><div><br /></div><div>Firstly, let's talk about the emotional impact of... Chewbacca. Check out this moment.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/RqIArE4Iw4U?start=35" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>If that video doesn't work or gets deleted due to a copyright claim some day, I'm trying to show you the moment when the Rebel commanders on Hoth decide they have to close the shield doors for the night, despite Han and Luke still being lost out there in the icy dusk. As the doors close with a thunderous "doooom", Chewie howls like a dog on a full moon. It's primal, yet it's heartfelt. Chewie cares so much about Han, he howls, as if in pain. And in turn, we care. Take Chewie out of that scene and it has a scintilla of the emotional impact it would otherwise have.</div><div><br /></div><div>Generally speaking, <i>Empire</i> gives Chewbacca a lot more depth. It's only little things - a surprise hug for Luke on Hoth, Chewie's concern and frustration at finding and then repairing a disassembled C-3PO on Cloud City, his efforts to take on Vader and his stormtroopers to save Han from being put in carbonite - but it speaks volumes. Chewie is a more well rounded character, and suddenly the world he inhabits feels richer, as do the relationships between everyone.</div><div><br /></div><div>(I was going to gripe about the bit in <i>The Force Awakens</i> when Leia consoles Rey instead of Chewie after what happens to Han, but I'm going to internalise the rage and move on.)</div><div><br /></div><div>Those emotions are even better illustrated by the white-hot sexual tension between Han and Leia in <i>Empire</i>. From her unwittingly incestuous kiss with Luke intended to inflame Han's jealousy, through to Han's "I know" retort to Leia's declaration of love, it's one of the most rewarding arcs of the movie. And that's saying something.</div><div><br /></div><div>But when you get down to it, the other big key arc is all about emotion. The whole "No. I am your father" reveal, even before the prequels and sequels and all the rest existed, threw a new emotional light over the entirety of what had come before in <i>Empire</i>. The film instantly flips from being about a supervillain hunting down the kid who blew up his doomsday device and becomes a haunting tale of a father who reveals his true identity to his son in the hopes he will join the family business (except the family business is ruling the galaxy). The emotion of <i>Empire</i> peaks right as the film flips, revealing layers of heart, complexity, pathos, and inter-relationships we didn't even know existed until that point.</div><div><br /></div><div>It might seem like a little thing, but it speaks to the differences between <i>A New Hope</i> and <i>Empire</i>. The former is intent on mythmaking and creating a kind of highly entertaining space opera never seen before in its time. The latter does that, but at a level of emotional intensity the first film could only dream of. </div><div><br /></div><div>Obviously the latter cannot exist without the former, and <i>Empire</i> has the benefit of standing on the shoulders of its giant predecessor. But whereas <i>A New Hope</i>'s greatest triumphs are in its storytelling, its groundbreaking special FX, and its remarkable legacy, <i>Empire</i> has all that and one extra key ingredient - emotion.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-57635941775395834692023-09-20T03:57:00.003-07:002023-09-20T03:57:55.223-07:00A Haunting In Venice<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on September 21, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b> (M) ★★★½<br /><br />Director: Kenneth Branagh.<br /><br />Cast: Kenneth Branagh, Kyle Allen, Camille Cottin, Jamie Dornan, Tina Fey, Jude Hill, Ali Khan, Emma Laird, Kelly Reilly, Riccardo Scamarcio, Michelle Yeoh.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWM1HH6AA5HojyKMSZw8uPOhvtg4oCsch96gFmT8GXAVT4t_6AS4w_3AT2RewpZAe6obce9KtChtZ2rqELyEgjgYMo9X-iBzDh0GIvddrZrBVmZObv_kn-dQoQufQaKaHscXqU1czYmZK2I-BdIzO7AwVQXv_ez7oW_MCZTdRBHFaP-86qCzuJgF7eR5A/s2000/haunting%20in%20venice.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1333" data-original-width="2000" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWM1HH6AA5HojyKMSZw8uPOhvtg4oCsch96gFmT8GXAVT4t_6AS4w_3AT2RewpZAe6obce9KtChtZ2rqELyEgjgYMo9X-iBzDh0GIvddrZrBVmZObv_kn-dQoQufQaKaHscXqU1czYmZK2I-BdIzO7AwVQXv_ez7oW_MCZTdRBHFaP-86qCzuJgF7eR5A/w400-h266/haunting%20in%20venice.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At any moment, someone was going to start either the Time Warp or the Macarena.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Kenneth Branagh is something of an enigma as a director. Even when he was known primarily as a Shakespearean adapter, he would bounce from one seemingly unconnected film to the next, shirking the idea of a style or particular approach so as to remain invisible as a director. Nothing has changed as his career has progressed. Sometimes he shifted gears with a disconcerting clunk that left the engine lying on the road, other times he took the wheel of a film like a Formula 1 driver - for every failure (<i>Artemis Fowl</i>, <i>Mary Shelley's Frankenstein</i>), there has been an incredible, perhaps unpredictable success (<i>Thor</i>, <i>Cinderella</i>, <i>Belfast</i>). <div><br /></div><div>Now it seems, instead of diving back into The Bard between these varied projects, he picks up an Agatha Christie tome. <i>A Haunting In Venice</i> completes his trilogy of directing and starring in Christie adaptions, and while it may seem like Branagh is on familiar terrain again, this is unlike any of his previous Poirot outings, or indeed anything in his back catalogue.<div><div><br /></div><div>Taking place on a stormy night in a Venetian palazzo, 11 people have gathered for a séance. But before the night is out, the number of ghosts in the building will increase thanks to a murderous guest among the party. And it's up to the famed Belgian detective to emerge from retirement and save the day.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yEddsSwweyE?si=8MBCoBRrzxI7UHih" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div>Unlike Branagh's past Poirot films <i><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2017/11/murder-on-orient-express-2017.html" target="_blank">Murder On The Orient Express</a> </i>and <i>Death On The Nile</i>, <i>A Haunting In Venice</i> deviates dramatically from its source. Ostensibly taken from Christie's 1969 novel <i>Hallowe'en Party</i>, the film bears little resemblance to the book, yet has all the trademark plotting of Agatha Christie, aped to perfection by screenwriter Michael Green, who did a fine job on ...<i>Orient Express</i> and ...<i>Nile</i>. </div><div><br /></div><div>But where the story feels like its predecessors, the look and style of the film do not. Branagh leans into the ghostly elements to summon a psychological thriller that's a world away from the train- and boat-bound whodunnits of before. This is a classic horror, filled with Dutch angles and brooding darkness. It's more unsettling than scary though, which isn't necessarily a bad thing.</div><div><br /></div><div>Branagh overdoes it a bit though. There are long stretches where every shot is framed oddly or tilted or characters are a little too close to the lens. Yes, it's unnerving, but the effect becomes tiresome as opposed to cumulative. This repetition adds to the bizarre sensation that the film is longer than his previous Poirot outings, when in fact it is the shortest of the trilogy.</div><div><br /></div><div>Thankfully the mystery is a good one, that unravels with care, even though the effects of the storm that keeps everyone confined to the palazzo for the night are barely invisible the day after. Coupled with the pacing, these are the only real downsides. </div><div><br /></div><div>Once again, Branagh has assembled a cracking cast, led by himself as the magnetic but increasingly broken Poirot. The pick of the bunch are Yeoh as a medium who may or may not be the real deal, Dornan as a doctor with PTSD, Fey as a long-time writer friend of Poirot's, Reilly as a grieving opera singer, and the precocious Hill as a disturbingly grown-up child.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's doubtful Branagh's Poirot trilogy will be remembered in years to come with the same passion as, say, Rian Johnson's similarly arranged <i>Knives Out</i> films, primarily because they don't crackle with the same energy or eccentricity. But they are fun diversions no less, and though <i>A Haunting In Venice</i> is more grim than grin, it's a well made throwback to a time when whodunnits could also make the hairs on the back of our necks stand up. </div></div></div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-67782794206746684812023-08-30T04:16:00.003-07:002023-08-30T04:16:33.926-07:00The Monkey King (2023)<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Radio across regional Victoria on August 24, 2023.<br /></i><br /><b>(PG) ★★★★<br /><br />Director: Anthony Stacchi.<br /><br /></b><div><b>Cast: (voices of) Jimmy O. Yang, Jolie Hoang-Rappaport, Bowen Yang, Jo Koy, Nan Li, Stephanie Hsu, BD Wong, Ron Yuan, Hoon Lee, Andrew Pang, Andrew Kishino, Jodi Long, James Sie, Dee Bradley Baker.</b></div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmTdkkhi4Wn-0gItgrFZkE2yaXe23T3ogkUnQWOOZeswKMcug68clrN2H8C44th_BQO6SPb5QRb_mdh9JztCvIwWt2MdNRs5Sssj0n-I5JgySkyQYKxAEJXSxMNSFBBDDae4yVSDhf8yQ9ypK3kBnDNCGYgua5WMkO9pW4KnjDQMXlBPV2DAla91gWVqs/s1920/the%20monkey%20king.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmTdkkhi4Wn-0gItgrFZkE2yaXe23T3ogkUnQWOOZeswKMcug68clrN2H8C44th_BQO6SPb5QRb_mdh9JztCvIwWt2MdNRs5Sssj0n-I5JgySkyQYKxAEJXSxMNSFBBDDae4yVSDhf8yQ9ypK3kBnDNCGYgua5WMkO9pW4KnjDQMXlBPV2DAla91gWVqs/w400-h225/the%20monkey%20king.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sticks were in, broomsticks were so passe. </td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>The 16th century Chinese folklore story known as <i>Journey To The West</i> is perhaps one of the most adapted tales of all time. Dozens and dozens of live action and animated versions exist across both the big and small screens. And with its 100 chapters, there is plenty of fodder in <i>Journey To The West </i>to fill dozens more adaptations in the centuries to come.</div><div><br /></div><div>This glossy, high-energy Netflix CG animation is the latest, but it's one of the most accessible. Pacey and punchy, it's a short, sharp introduction to the titular character that has just enough depth and characterisation to temper its ferociously fast action sequences and to ensure all ages are thoroughly entertained.</div><div><br /></div><div>The film is essentially the origin story of the Monkey King, or the first seven or so chapters of <i>Journey To The West</i>. It follows the hero from his birth out of a meteorite to his quest for immortality. Along the way he steals a magical stick (Li) that becomes his weapon of choice, and reluctantly teams up with a young peasant girl named Lin (Hoang-Rappaport).</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-Ao79QJNE-s?si=jTc7ZNUIDHnnfelm" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>To call <i>The Monkey King</i> frenetic is an understatement, but there is a level of control and visibility to its rapid-fire storytelling and fight scenes that is very welcome. It knows when to take a breath and squeeze a character moment in among the scattergun gags and hyperactivity, and it knows how to make a set-piece easy-to-follow despite moving at a million miles an hour.</div><div><br /></div><div>Stacchi, whose background is in special effects and storyboarding, brings so much verve and energy to the film. There are some interesting flourishes of individuality - a montage of Monkey King taking on 99 demons is shown in a flashy paintbrush style, Stick's voice is Mongolian throat singing, and there are some choice heavy metal originals in the soundtrack. These elements help make the tropier bits of the storytelling feel refreshing, surprisingly fun, and super awesome. </div><div><br /></div><div>The Asian-American voice cast is excellent, with Yang channelling Chris Rock as the star of the show, Hoang-Rappaport brings the heart as Lin, and the iconic BD Wong showing up as Buddha. The characters are memorable and some of them feel a bit different to what we might see in a normal kids film - Monkey King's arrogance and egomania is certainly unique.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's great fun, though it feels a little slight overall and a bit weak thematically. But that doesn't stop it being perfect for all ages, and a great introduction into one of the greatest Chinese stories of all time.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-18375533299531705882023-08-08T03:09:00.002-07:002023-08-08T03:09:20.029-07:00Hidden Strike<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Radio across regional Victoria on August 10, 2023.<br /></i><br /><b>(M) ★★<br /><br />Director: Scott Waugh.<br /><br />Cast: Jackie Chan, John Cena, Pilou Asbaek, Ma Chunrui, Amadeus Serafini, Tim Man. </b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJsho7ZhCjfzVUnWgOS5DIP9fCFILR-HfsRkoXLB3zJbZ3O8bjMk0hL85PF6v2c_9vkFbRPOBsYlnKl3YV4KwzuJg1kFLMed5PYVLI6STwrl_YXvjRDTwxaCE-CUVwt1vIwEL69HEW8_DP71cwWaKwsCHP1vRfz6TsBiwcN7yKn1wper8yUNmzQw8Hxvg/s1280/hidden%20strike.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1280" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJsho7ZhCjfzVUnWgOS5DIP9fCFILR-HfsRkoXLB3zJbZ3O8bjMk0hL85PF6v2c_9vkFbRPOBsYlnKl3YV4KwzuJg1kFLMed5PYVLI6STwrl_YXvjRDTwxaCE-CUVwt1vIwEL69HEW8_DP71cwWaKwsCHP1vRfz6TsBiwcN7yKn1wper8yUNmzQw8Hxvg/w400-h225/hidden%20strike.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Wait - who's leading this dance?"</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>For a film that went through half a dozen name changes and sat on the shelf for half a decade, <i>Hidden Strike</i> is nowhere near as bad as you would expect.</div><div><br /></div><div>Yes, it's largely rubbish, and it's only saved from being absolute rubbish by the sheer force of will of Jackie Chan and John Cena, but I have seen far worse films that didn't sit in the can for five years before finding a distributor.</div><div><br /></div><div>The irrelevantly titled film centres on Dragon Luo (Chan) and Chris Van Horne (Cena), two ex-military men on opposing sides of a tense hostage situation. Dragon and his security team are tasked with rescuing a group of Chinese nationals trapped in an oil refinery, while Chris gets sucked into "one last mission" by his brother, who is part of a gang hired to kidnap some of the Chinese nationals.</div><div><br /></div><div>But when Chris realises his brother is working for the bad guys, he teams reluctantly with Dragon to get the hostages back.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/l_jEicE6KyQ" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div>Aside from the truly horrendous CGI in places, the biggest problem with <i>Hidden Strike</i> is that Chan and Cena are too funny and wacky to be convincing as ex-special forces no-nonsense military types. This is either a casting problem (you got the wrong actors), a screenwriting problem (you haven't tailored the script to the big-name actors that have signed on), or a directorial problem (you've told your stars to be loveable goofballs half the time, and hard-arse soldiers of fortune the other half of the time). But let's face it - people are watching this because Chan and Cena are in it, and when they're being a goofy buddy-film duo, the film is enjoyable. So the script or direction should have changed to make this sit better.</div><div><br /></div><div>Because without Chan and Cena, this is unwatchable. The story is a so-so mess about an oil heist, with the trailer hinting at a not-too-distant future that isn't evident in the film at all. There's a partial desire to belatedly cash-in on the success of <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2015/05/mad-max-fury-road.html" target="_blank"><i>Mad Max: Fury Road</i></a> - and some of those parts are cool - but largely it's a shiftless mess of '80s action clichés, bad direction, terrible CGI and a weirdly oversaturated colour palette. </div><div><br /></div><div>Cena and Chan vibe well, and Chan still has 80 per cent of his moves (despite being 64 years old at the time of shooting). As someone who has watched a shitload of Jackie Chan films over the years, I'm very aware that you watch his movies for the stunts, not the story, and if one of his films just so happened to have a strong script it was a bonus. With all that in mind, this is C-grade Chan - nowhere near the best stuff in terms of stunts and scripts, but also not the worst.</div><div><br /></div><div>There's been an effort made here to make things memorable. Parts of the plot, some characters, a handful of action sequences and that horrendous soft-focus blueish-orangeness that tints everything actually stick out in the memory (for better or worse), but none of those elements are enough to make this good, let alone great.</div><div><br /></div><div>In summary: hopefully Netflix didn't pay too much for <i>Hidden Strike</i>, but there are bound to be far worse films on the service.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-4099650684823378152023-07-25T03:32:00.002-07:002023-07-25T03:32:58.799-07:00One of my favourite pieces of film criticism: Apocalypse Now ReduxWeird piece of trivia - the man who directed <i><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2020/04/afi-2-godfather-1972.html" target="_blank">The Godfather</a></i> and <i><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2020/12/afi-30-apocalypse-now-1979.html" target="_blank">Apocalypse Now</a></i> also directed <i>Jack</i>, in which Robin Williams plays a 10-year-old trapped in the body of a 40-year-old. The latter is rated 17 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes.<div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMwV_y7jHfLX6RBzlMuQgdsfeIoSRfr4xNdtgApbEjyMW6lToUcFhyNFTOO-F4vDMA75vKJc5kyfMtd-WiVWqdM-U4jkQNSoEf5_JfOktntJNmfQmJ-Udk72TRFqNmCFLZd7YCXjjxyn1GBKMaf31B5yA-J4tDnLqioPLYLmIF9XtVNOHxOneTQqrsfQg/s2447/jack.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1524" data-original-width="2447" height="249" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMwV_y7jHfLX6RBzlMuQgdsfeIoSRfr4xNdtgApbEjyMW6lToUcFhyNFTOO-F4vDMA75vKJc5kyfMtd-WiVWqdM-U4jkQNSoEf5_JfOktntJNmfQmJ-Udk72TRFqNmCFLZd7YCXjjxyn1GBKMaf31B5yA-J4tDnLqioPLYLmIF9XtVNOHxOneTQqrsfQg/w400-h249/jack.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"From the director of <i>Apocalypse Now</i>..."</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><div><br /></div><div>Francis Ford Coppola is responsibly for some of the greatest films of all time. His late-career fade-out is also unmatched, but it inspired what is one of my favourite pieces of film criticism of all time. It's by Jim Schembri, a critic I once admired, and its meta-mix of review, in-joke and analysis is something I've thought about for over two decades.</div><div><br /></div><div> I couldn't find it anywhere online, but being the hoarder that I am, I kept the centrespread from The Age's EG liftout, circa November 9, 2001, and reproduce it here for educational purposes. </div><div><br />***</div><div><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;"><b>Every man has a breaking point</b></h2><b>JIM SCHEMBRI risks life and limb in search of the truth</b><br /><br /><i>A line of palm trees erupts in flame. Helicopters pass back and forth in slow- motion to the sombre chords of </i>The End<i> by the Doors as the camera slowly pans across the burning foliage.<br /><br />These are the unforgettable opening images of Francis Ford Coppola's </i>Apocalypse Now<i>, the definitive film about the Vietnam conflict and one of the most powerful films about the nature of warfare.<br /><br />Released in 1979, and for which Coppola risked his house and his sanity, </i>Apocalypse Now<i> has endured as a work of cinematic brilliance that seems ever more fresh with each viewing.<br /><br />Now, after 22 years of legend-building, Coppola has delivered </i>Apocalypse Now Redux<i>, his greatly extended version of the film. The original ran 153 minutes. The new one, sporting 49 minutes of new footage, runs 202. It's a mess. A sad mess.<br /><br />To devotees of the film, and of Coppola, it's an utterly confounding mess.<br /><br />We know Coppola's been off the boil for more than a decade, but was that any reason to mangle his own masterpiece?<br /><br />Why did Coppola do this? What happened to that great career? Can we, and should we, forgive him?<br /><br />With my mind abuzz with thoughts of Coppola. I find myself drifting into an altered state of consciousness, sucked into the images and dialogue of </i>Apocalypse Now<i>. I must embark on my own journey to review his career, to analyse </i>Redux<i> and, ultimately, to locate and confront Coppola, who sits in a ramshackle bamboo hut at the end of a long, winding river... </i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>I must find him... to ask questions... to seek answers...</i><br /><br />Saigon. Shit.<br /><br />I'm still only in Saigon.<br /><br />The walls of this room are closing in on me. In my mind I'm trying to defend the new version of <i>Apocalypse Now</i>, trying to convince myself Coppola has improved on his brilliant original. But the more I do, the closer the walls get and the louder the terrible truth becomes. And the truth is this: watching <i>Redux</i> is like watching Leonardo da Vinci go back to the Mona Lisa and retouching it with crayon.<br /><br />I must find out why.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8KADNXCyHUtBbNNq31UWaPfRD1kt1Rltsn_WUHfnRhu8SuvP37mQqkYkQ2dWr3td8I5E_PmECEipEcCmSaifpeQr3-ATvXyClbmzsIslMMwN1BemulNI-xLjG_UcMRclzQGc3QGdl82VjWWDjjblOO6dW1-yofZLs4Gx0HYamN951MEDGw84rR_2yIbo/s1920/apocalypse%20now.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1920" height="160" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8KADNXCyHUtBbNNq31UWaPfRD1kt1Rltsn_WUHfnRhu8SuvP37mQqkYkQ2dWr3td8I5E_PmECEipEcCmSaifpeQr3-ATvXyClbmzsIslMMwN1BemulNI-xLjG_UcMRclzQGc3QGdl82VjWWDjjblOO6dW1-yofZLs4Gx0HYamN951MEDGw84rR_2yIbo/w400-h160/apocalypse%20now.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div><br />—<br /><br />On a small patrol boat, I chug up-river to confront Coppola. I wonder how it is that one of the greatest movies of all time - one <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2020/03/the-afi-100-project.html" target="_blank">the American Film Institute</a> ranked 28 in its top 100 American films - should find itself the victim of such an ill-conceived reworking by its creator. Could it be a simple grab for former glory? Knowing he now churns out mall-fodder, perhaps this is his way of reminding us of the heights he'd hit. But if he wanted to do that, surely he would grace us with <i>Godfather IV</i>. There's still that final chapter left to be told, the one hinted at in <i>Godfather II</i>, about the Corleone family exerting influence in the White House. Surely that's the swansong he deserves, not this exercise in padding.<br /><br />The boat makes a turn in the river and I sit on the bow, setting off purple flares and throwing them into the jungle as I reflect on the 49 minutes Coppola's added.<br /><br />The 1979 film, based on the Joseph Conrad novella <i>Heart of Darkness</i>, involves Captain Willard (Martin Sheen) travelling in a patrol boat up a river to locate and kill a renegade commander, Colonel Walter E. Kurtz (Marlon Brando). There are memorable encounters with a gung-ho colonel (Robert Duvall) who loves the smell of napalm in the morning, a bridge under siege, a <i>Playboy</i> bunny concert and a sampan full of civilians whom the crew massacre by accident. But the heart of the film is the tension built by Willard's internal dialogue as he tries to understand the war he's in, and the man he's been told to kill.<br /><br />In its original form, the film was exciting, lush, seductive, engrossing. <i>Apocalypse Now Redux</i> is simply too long and boring, losing all its tension due to all these new encounters for Willard and the crew.<br /><br />Compounding this, Willard's now a lot more chummy with the boat's crew, robbing the journey of that delicious icy chasm between the grunts ("rock-and-rollers with one foot in their graves") and the aloof officer.<br /><br />For about 40 minutes the film is untouched. Only after the classic helicopter attack on the Vietcong village does the first new bit trickle in.<br /><br />Colonel Kilgore, standing on the beach he's so keen to surf, ushers a Vietnamese mother and child on to his personal helicopter for medical attention. This, after his helicopters have strafed her village. It highlights the contradiction in Kilgore, the conflicting warrior impulse to kill and to save. It turns out to be the only new scene in <i>Redux</i> that's worthwhile.<br /><br />What follows is a knockabout comedy sequence about Kilgore's surfboard, which Willard steals with the help of the other men on the boat, Chief (Albert Hall), Clean (Laurence Fishburne), Lance (Sam Bottoms) and Chef (Frederic Forrest). As the boat hides under trees on the banks of the river, Kilgore's choppers go in vain search of the board.<br /><br />Like the other new scenes in <i>Redux</i>, it adds nothing good to the film and distorts its original shape, throwing off-balance moments that were beautifully poised. "Some day this war's going to end," was Kilgore's original, memorable exit line. Now it's lost in the jumble of misjudged comedy that follows.<br /><br />The <i>Playboy</i> bunnies, who appeared only in the concert scene in the original, now feature in meaningless, fumbling trysts with the boat's crew when they stop at a run-down US medivac station. As objectified, unattainable sex symbols in the original, their fleeting, teasing appearance underscored the youth of the soldiers, many of whom may have been seeing a woman for the last time. By reducing them to easy lays, the original point is sacrificed for the unremarkable statement that these boys are horny. We really didn't need to see the girls again.<br /><br />Easily the most contentious addition, however, is the French plantation sequence. This is where, shortly after Clean is killed, the boat encounters a group of French people who have been in the jungle for generations and who were fighting the Vietnamese for decades before the Americans got involved.<br /><br />In <i>Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse</i>, the excellent 1991 documentary by Coppola's wife, Eleanor, on the tortured making of the film, Coppola is asked about the sequence. He says without reservation that he was unhappy with the entire segment because he didn't get the cast he wanted. We even see footage of him telling the cast the scene "no longer exists".<br /><br />Now it's back, in its entirety. What are we to make of Coppola reinstating something he openly declared was mediocre? Are we supposed to disregard what he said and declare what a great bonus it is? Does Coppola think we all have amnesia?<br /><br />The boat chugs on, snaking its way past an enclave of film critics who have gone native. One wades through the water holding a suitcase, trying to reach the boat, but I gun the engine and outrun him. Safe again, I steady the boat and increase speed as my desire to confront Coppola grows. I grab the folder stuffed full of press clippings, tear through the "TOP SECRET" seal and examine the contents. </div><div><br /></div><div>The dossier on Francis Ford Coppola's career is the tale of a once-great artist in a tailspin. A genuine visionary who left indelible stamps on modern cinema in the 1970s, he appears to have lost both his nerve and his touch. <i>Redux</i> is a sad symptom of that decline.<br /><br />At first glance it's hard to believe such a career could go so far off the rails. The man has enough major awards to support a king-size mattress and base, including a clutch of Oscars: best director, film and screenplay for <i>Godfather II</i>; best screenplay for <i>The Godfather</i>, best screenplay for <i>Patton</i>, et cetera et cetera. Among his larger triumphs are smaller works that reflected the level of his personal and artistic commitment. <i>The Rain People</i> (1969), a moving domestic drama about a housewife who goes on a road trip to sort out her life, began shooting without a finished screenplay. Coppola put his faith in his cast to complete his vision. <i>The Conversation</i> (1974), with Gene Hackman, about a paranoid surveillance expert, took Coppola years to make. It, too, went into production before the script was done. The result was a classic example of Coppola's artistic instincts paying off.<br /><br />In the late 1960s, after showing promise with the flop musical <i>Finian's Rainbow</i> (1968), the comedy <i>You're A Big Boy Now</i> (1967) and the horror film <i>Dementia 13</i> (1963, for Roger Corman), Coppola sensed the creative dangers of working in the Hollywood studio system and saw the need for his own independent studio, American Zoetrope.<br /><br />The first two <i>Godfather</i> films earned him Oscars and millions, giving him the clout to get production started on <i>Apocalypse Now</i>, which had been simmering since the late 1960s. The film still stands as the quintessential expression of Coppola as visionary, the man who puts himself on the line for his art. As <i>Hearts Of Darkness</i> vividly documents, Coppola nearly went nuts making <i>Apocalypse Now</i>, for which he put up his own assets to cover the $16 million needed when the film ran over budget.<br /><br />Then things went truly pear-shaped. With the legendary failure of <i>One From the Heart</i> (1982), Coppola overreached by a long shot. Attempting to make a musical comedy-romance with meaning, he recreated massively expensive Las Vegas settings in the studio.<br /><br />The film was also meant to demonstrate Coppola's concept of "electronic cinema". This was where extensive pre-production, rehearsals on videotape and storing the screenplay on computer disk to allow for easy restructuring was meant to result in huge savings of time and money.<br /><br />It backfired. The film's budget shot into the stratosphere - $25 million was a lot in 1982 - and its troubled production was regular news. In the end, Coppola produced a technically dazzling film, but one so dogged with well-publicised financial problems and bad reviews ("One of the worst movies I've ever seen," said Judy Stone, of the <i>San Francisco Chronicle</i>, "It's cold and mechanical... the heart is missing," wrote Pauline Kael, of <i>The New Yorker</i>) it bankrupted him and sank Zoetrope. Still, it showed he had balls.<br /><br />By the time Coppola got to the overstylised juvenile-delinquent drama <i>Rumblefish</i> (1983) and the beautiful-looking, messily directed <i>The Cotton Club</i> (1984), he was still leaving his mark but was clearly beginning to slip. <i>Gardens of Stone</i> (1987), a drama set in a cemetery where the dead of the Vietnam War are buried, was the first Coppola film that didn't bear his fingerprints.<br /><br />With <i>Tucker: The Man and his Dream</i> (1988), Coppola's fluid visual style and love of strong performances were back on track in his loving tribute to legendary car maker Preston Tucker. It was a box-office dog whistle.<br /><br />Alas, <i>Godfather III</i> (1990) is the last known sighting of Coppola's unmistakable style.<br /><br />The 1990s showcase Francis Ford Coppola the multiplex filler, not the artist and visionary of yore - <i>Dracula</i> (1992), <i>John Grisham's The Rainmaker</i> (1997), the comedy <i>Jack</i> (1996), in which Robin Williams plays a 10-year-old boy. If you didn't see Coppola's name on the credits, you never would've dared guess they were his films.<br /><br />In the dossier I find a host of reviews that concur.<br /><br />After seeing <i>Dracula</i>, Christopher Sharrett of <i>USA Today</i> wrote: "The last nail in the coffin... for a director whose sagging career has been of much speculation and concern for more than a decade."<br /><br />Gene Siskel of <i>The Chicago Sun-Times</i>. "<i>Jack</i> is anything but vintage Coppola. In fact, I would be hard-pressed to point to a single image that is distinctive.'<br /><br />Michael Wilmington from <i>The Chicago Tribune</i> said <i>Jack</i> was "... sunny, humane and high-spirited, done with real technical finesse. But from Francis Ford Coppola? It's like watching Rembrandt sit down to labor over an elaborate doodle for two hours".<br /><br />As for <i>The Cotton Club</i>, <i>The New York Times'</i> Vincent Canby declared the film demonstrated "no special character, style or excitement".<br /><br />It's depressing reading, and one by one I rip the reviews and drop them into the wash of the boat as we near Coppola's compound at the end of the river.<br /><br />Then, as the sunlight glints off the river into my eyes, a thought strikes me.<br /><br />We mourn when an artist dies before their time, before we feel they've given us their best. By that measure, surely we should at least be grateful that an artist in decline, sad as that is, has nonetheless graced us with their best work. They may now wallow in financially successful mediocrity (<i>Jack</i>, <i>Dracula</i>, <i>Rainmaker</i> were all money-makers), but we can still cherish the time when these artists risked all to give us their soul. So, as the boat enters the compound, I think perhaps we should forgive Coppola this indulgence with <i>Redux</i>, however misguided we believe it to be.<br /><br />Before I have a chance to swing the boat around, however, his minions swarm aboard, tie me up and carry me off to meet him.<br /><br />I'm taken into a hut and thrown down near a dark corner. It smells like slow death in here. I look around. Posters of his Oscar winners, once resplendent and glorious, now faded and cracked, peel off the walls. There are film canisters everywhere. The labels say they contain offcuts, deleted scenes and alternate takes from Coppola's greatest movies.<br /><br />A dark thought passes through my mind. Is he going to "redux" those films, too? The six-hour <i>Godfather</i>? The four-hour <i>Conversation</i>?<br /><br />There's heavy breathing in the dark corner of the hut. I strain to see a figure shrouded in the gloom. In the half-light I glimpse the outline of that trademark beard and glasses.<br /><br />He looks at me. He knows what I think of <i>Redux</i>. He knows what I've been thinking about him, what everyone who loves him is thinking: that he's had it, is over the hill, past his prime. Finally, Coppola addresses me.<br /><br />"Are you an assassin?" he asks in a low, guttural voice.<br /><br />"I'm a journalist," is all I can say.<br /><br />"You're neither," he says. "You're a film critic, sent by editors to collect a bill."<br /><br />He eats a pistachio, swallows a bug, then continues.<br /><br />"You saw <i>Redux</i>?" </div><div><br /></div><div>"Yes, sir."<br /><br />"Are my methods unsound?" he asks. </div><div><br /></div><div>I think before I answer. "I don't see any method." I gulp. "It looks like self-inflicted vandalism."<br /><br />"I once was a film maker who could walk along the edge of a straight razor," he says. "The thought of keeping that level of brilliance up all my life to please the likes of you, that is my dream. That is my nightmare.'<br /><br />"I know what a nightmare is," I say. "I sat through <i>Dracula</i> twice."<br /><br />He gestures to the guard, who takes me out of the hut and unties me. I'm free to leave. Back on the boat, as the warm tropical rain pelts down, I think. Should I call in the air strike and put him out of his misery?<br /><br />Perhaps I'm being too demanding, too greedy. So much of film-making today is so bland and commercial, so governed by test screenings and accountants that we pine for the Coppola of old to return and turn things upside-down with his vision, his fortitude and his big, crazy ideas.<br /><br />He was an auteur who stuck his dick in the wind. He set grand examples. The fact he no longer follows them isn't a crime. The crime is that the new crop of directors - who have the technology, the money, the studio support Coppola could only ever dream of - haven't followed his lead.<br /><br />I turn the boat around and chug away. Coppola's given us his best. We shouldn't crucify him for downshifting into cruise mode.<br /><br />I decide against calling in the air strike, at least for now. After all, he may still have one more left in him.<br /><br /><b>*A key source for this article was the unauthorised biography Francis Ford Coppola: A Filmmaker's Life, by Michael Schumacher (Bloomsbury).</b></div></div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-38419197325551270882023-07-21T04:36:00.006-07:002023-07-23T03:12:50.829-07:00Barbie<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Radio across regional Victoria on July 27, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(PG) ★★★★<br /><br />Director: Greta Gerwig.<br /><br />Cast: Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, </b><b>Will Ferrell, Kate McKinnon, Simu Liu, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Issa Rae, </b><b>Michael Cera, </b><b>Ariana Greenblatt, </b><b>Rhea Perlman, </b><b>Helen Mirren. </b><div><b><br /></b></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL-VTDL0D2pg4nQmOOwd_FSI2kpYBc98x4rZYAstZqe-6L3xwdqNnFVMHBXXOwGSq3OFIpWSP6-ZBhlpUY-5NKucHTt-icJ_BlV9_moMAvr9Di5uOdNqVOD5wI1hJbqmZFrDASZFQzJNKIlv_OTpxzmTqr3qWPDLDE5-eIs77DY6nANdqYIaoXXsxmbKw/s2985/barbie.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1679" data-original-width="2985" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL-VTDL0D2pg4nQmOOwd_FSI2kpYBc98x4rZYAstZqe-6L3xwdqNnFVMHBXXOwGSq3OFIpWSP6-ZBhlpUY-5NKucHTt-icJ_BlV9_moMAvr9Di5uOdNqVOD5wI1hJbqmZFrDASZFQzJNKIlv_OTpxzmTqr3qWPDLDE5-eIs77DY6nANdqYIaoXXsxmbKw/w400-h225/barbie.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Why walk when you can blade, dude?"</td></tr></tbody></table><br />As they say in the classics, you can't have your cake and eat it too. Mattel doesn't give a shit about what they say in the classics. It absolutely owns cake and eats cake here. </div><div><br /></div><div>By that I mean Mattel has somehow managed to get its most iconic toy into a film that both praises and shreds said toy. The movie is an intelligent satire that deals with the very feminism Barbie undermines and the patriarchy the doll upholds, but it's also a daft goof, filled with dance battles and melodrama. It is a giant ad designed to sell toys, while also pointing out how inane and ridiculous it all is. It even lampoons Mattel itself as a gormless money-hungry corporation, while still celebrating the role it played in creating a cultural icon.</div><div><br /></div><div>How is this possible? The answer is director/writer Greta Gerwig.</div><div><br /></div><div>The story follows Stereotypical Barbie (Robbie), who lives one perfect day after another in Barbieland, until some un-Barbie-like thoughts begin to creep into her mind. Desperate to continue her idyllic life, she and her acquaintance Ken (Gosling) must travel to The Real World, where they both learn some brutal truths about how things really work.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/pBk4NYhWNMM" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div>The appointment of indie darling Gerwig (<i>Lady Bird</i>, <i>Little Women</i>) and her partner-in-crime Noah Baumbach to write <i>Barbie</i> seemed almost akin to asking Wes Anderson to direct a <i>Fast & Furious</i> movie, but it pays off in droves. Within whatever limits Mattel set, they've crafted a script that's a cutting examination of gender roles and societal expectations that's also filled with air-headed charm. The film gets how problematic Barbie has been, and how emblematic it is of deeper problems in society, and that drives the entire show. Gerwig has a limited yet still startling amount of freedom here, and she goes for broke. She's made a Barbie film that somehow appeals to the grown-up angry woman and the optimistic little girl she once was, all at the same time.</div><div><br /></div><div>That Gerwig manages to balance the hard-hitting feminist themes with an airy, sparkly pinkness is no mean feat. The amazing production design certainly helps. It revels in the fakeness and has a ball apeing the OG toys. Barbieland is a marvel of set construction and dressing, while the wardrobe department has been working overtime. And it make The Real World look all the more drab by comparison, even though it's just, well, real.</div><div><br /></div><div>None of this precarious juggling of tones would work without having a Barbie that can deal with both the earnest sentimentality and the ditzy goofiness. Thankfully Robbie is more than up to the task. She delivers an iconic performance in an iconic role, perfectly articulating the humour, naivety and emotion required.</div><div><br /></div><div>Gosling is also in fine form in arguably the tougher role. Ken's place in the film is tricky to balance, and Gosling seems to thrive in making Ken unlikeable. There are no sympathetic male characters here - sorry guys - and Ken is one of the worst, maintaining a level of idiocy throughout that is hilarious, thanks in no small part to Gosling.</div><div><br /></div><div>The other standout is Ferrera, who is a grounding presence the latter half of the film can revolve around as it almost spins off its axis. Her performance and her character ensure the final act doesn't go completely off the rails, which is helpful because it's the final act where the film struggles. As any gymnast will tell you, it's hard to stick the landing, and <i>Barbie</i> doesn't quite know how to get its slanted plastic feet on the ground. Act three drags on, putting the film in danger of outstaying its welcome.</div><div><br /></div><div>Ferrell's presence, as Mattel's CEO, is also tricky to handle because he leans fully into the wackiness. This helps prevent the film from making Mattel anything other than bumbling plot drivers, as opposed to out-and-out villains. It's probably a fair assumption Mattel had a say in limiting the evilness of its own portrayal, because the company's role in the movie is key yet somehow feels tangential.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Barbie</i> is funny and whip-smart. Could it hit hard and push further? Absolutely. But that ignores how remarkable it is that this film got made - they made a <i>Barbie</i> movie for grown-ups about feminism and the patriarchy. Let that sink in for a moment. Absolutely no one had that on their bingo card five or ten years ago.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-44659332006385902992023-07-14T04:45:00.000-07:002023-07-14T04:45:05.328-07:00Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Radio across regional Victoria on July 13, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(M) ★★★★<br /><br />Director: Christopher McQuarrie.<br /><br />Cast: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Esai Morales, Henry Czerny, Pom Klementieff, Cary Elwes, Shea Whigham.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOnVbw1SGYD6y6_uZCx74C-nd5aRP8tORAHCTrFlhm9PNyGLIou3pdxZ3enOZ1HEbq6Lui08TU_n46DWA-9ab9JWeOg3YrUwxJc0QprZBVxUwMmNlsuHjm-ed5Fn8l2UC1TTKBhR4wc_fPC-zq3d2peYUP_PHlIhRrpKLImBtuGzHM5LR7GWyUperfmCw/s960/mission-impossible-dead-reckoning-part-one-1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="540" data-original-width="960" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOnVbw1SGYD6y6_uZCx74C-nd5aRP8tORAHCTrFlhm9PNyGLIou3pdxZ3enOZ1HEbq6Lui08TU_n46DWA-9ab9JWeOg3YrUwxJc0QprZBVxUwMmNlsuHjm-ed5Fn8l2UC1TTKBhR4wc_fPC-zq3d2peYUP_PHlIhRrpKLImBtuGzHM5LR7GWyUperfmCw/w400-h225/mission-impossible-dead-reckoning-part-one-1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Mission: Impossible - Traffic Cop</i> didn't have the right ring to it.</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><br /><div><div><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2015/07/mission-impossible-rogue-nation.html" target="_blank">Read my full review of <i>Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation</i> here.</a></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2011/12/mission-impossible-ghost-protocol.html" target="_blank">Read my full review of <i>Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol</i> here.</a></div></div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2018/08/mission-impossible-fallout.html" target="_blank">Read my full review of <i>Mission: Impossible - Fallout</i> here.</a></div><div><br /></div><div>I've seen five of the previous six <i>Mission: Impossible</i> films, and I'm damned if I can remember a single plot element from any of them. All anyone can recall is Tom Cruise's increasingly bonkers stunts, right? As mentioned in my review for <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2018/08/mission-impossible-fallout.html" target="_blank"><i>M:I - Fallout</i></a>, the films tend to become known as The One Where Tom Cruise Climbs The Burj Khalifa or The One Where Tom Cruise Hangs On To A Plane During Takeoff etc.</div><div><br /></div><div>With that in mind, this <i>Mission</i> has one of the better and more memorable plots of the bunch, though it's still highly likely we'll all come to refer to it as The One Where Tom Cruise Rides A Motorbike Off A Cliff.</div><div><br /></div><div>The plot, for what it's worth, involves a rogue AI called The Entity. Every world government wants to catch it and harness it, but Ethan Hunt (Cruise) knows it can't be contained, and wants to destroy it.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/avz06PDqDbM" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div>Much like a Bond film, <i>M:I</i> movies are about a couple of key things - the villain and the stunts. If those are top notch, which they typically are, then we start to make sure the plot makes sense, the performances are good, and the movie doesn't outstay its welcome or make any dramatic mis-steps. The formula is established, so usually it's about following the recipe, and maybe adding some extra flavours along the way.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Dead Reckoning Part One</i> ticks every M:I box, often with flair. It's the best one since the original, waaaay back in 1996, blending a strong plot, a solid couple of villains, and some of the best stunts the series has seen. Tom Cruise rides a motorbike of a fucking cliff, for chrissake, but the final sequence involving a runaway train is fantastic.</div><div><br /></div><div>It's the side players that have been the series' strong suit of late. Rhames and Pegg are always handy to have in your pocket, while Atwell is a stellar addition. Ferguson, sadly, feels underused, having been one of the best things about the past couple of films.</div><div><br /></div><div>And Cruise, well, he just keeps on cruising. He could do this stuff in his sleep, even at age 60, and obviously ramps up the stunts with each new film to give himself a reason to get up out of the giant bed made of money that he probably sleeps on every night. Ethan Hunt is the apex hero in action cinema - he has no weaknesses beyond his own morality and forthright desire to do good, no matter the cost. He's flawless, which should be boring. Hunt goes against the rules of screenwriting, because he's almost a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Sue" target="_blank">Marty Stu</a>. The only thing that saves him from this is he sometimes fails, though usually through no fault of his own. In <i>Dead Reckoning Part One</i>, he even saves the day by accident in one incredibly memorable moment that I'm pretty sure some people will hate, but I think is fantastic and hilarious.</div><div><br /></div><div>The point is that Hunt shouldn't be such a drawcard but he is, and its all due to Cruise. We buy into these films largely because we know it really is Cruise hanging on the side of an airplane or riding a motorbike off a cliff. It's not even about the character anymore. It's about Cruise doing crazy shit. </div><div><br /></div><div><i>M:I</i> is so ingrained in its formula now that they can make jokes about it. "He always goes rogue," notes one character, referring to Ethan Hunt. Yes, he does, but if it ain't broke, don't fix it.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-27207147154755771682023-07-12T04:54:00.004-07:002023-07-12T04:54:32.295-07:00Who will win triple j's Hottest 100 of Like A Versions?<p></p><div style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2OUSJTAHi0X5DlY16lBmY6Wbbt45GYjyAk0sR1pBFWoy8Q17b-0LLAvQelnPhX2DNBxCZ5_ZPuQ0WphtxAfzd4FFbKgfCz1kWTSeL4OoY5wsayRfu66V7lQGXbcgLyu5UgQGPqRkXxXYQZALkamf_vSzgkw3ir6qh8o_CCGcL-tXQ7z9TlhGgPxVH6MU/s862/denzel%20curry.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="862" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2OUSJTAHi0X5DlY16lBmY6Wbbt45GYjyAk0sR1pBFWoy8Q17b-0LLAvQelnPhX2DNBxCZ5_ZPuQ0WphtxAfzd4FFbKgfCz1kWTSeL4OoY5wsayRfu66V7lQGXbcgLyu5UgQGPqRkXxXYQZALkamf_vSzgkw3ir6qh8o_CCGcL-tXQ7z9TlhGgPxVH6MU/s320/denzel%20curry.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><p></p><p>triple j airs its Hottest 100 of Like A Versions this weekend. The segment, now 20-ish years old, has brought in a hugely talented array of artists to create more than 850 covers over the years. Some have been incredible, some have been, well, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TDX4dcWZNk" target="_blank">this one feels like satire (seriously, it's a joke, right?</a>). </p><p>But what makes a good cover? Let's explore that question while we try to figure out who's going to win this weekend's countdown. </p><p>As with <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2023/01/who-will-win-triple-js-hottest-100-of.html" target="_blank">previous Hottest 100s</a>, I've looked at a range of factors to explore the likely contenders. This one's a bit different though. Social media vote aggregator <a href="https://100warmtunas.com/" target="_blank">100 Warm Tunas</a> is still a thing, but there seems to be fewer votes ie. less data for it to work with, which means it could be less accurate than usual. ARIA chart appearances are basically non-existent, but <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2023/05/88-songs-that-could-make-it-into-triple.html" target="_blank">appearances in previous countdowns is definitely a thing</a>. It seems like YouTube plays could be key element, and who knows whether the bookies will get it right this time.</p><p>All in all, this might be a tough one to predict. But read on....</p><p><b>Note:</b> All stats and odds correct at time of writing.</p><p><b>Also note:</b> I'm using Sportsbet's odds as an indicator, not an endorsement. Remember: you win some, you lose more. What are you really gambling with? Chances are, you're about to lose. What's gambling really costing you? Imagine what you could be buying instead. Don't be a deadshit. Etc, etc.</p><div><b>Also also note:</b> You can listen to the countdown this Saturday (July 15) from midday (AEST) on triple j and Double J.</div><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">Believe - DMA's (2016)</h3><div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MmwFnoMoDDg" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div></div><br /><b>Warm Tunas:</b> #1<br /><b>Sportsbet:</b> $1.33 (favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing:</b> #6<br /><b>YouTube:</b> 12,504,762 views</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it will win:</b> Stripping Cher's blockbuster of its autotune and dancefloor excesses, DMA's found a startling ballad at the song's heart. The surprise was part of the cover's appeal, along with the nostalgia for the original. Take note of that last point - most of the favourites to poll well are older tunes pre-2005, brimming with nostalgia, with a notable exception being The Wiggles' LAV, in which the nostalgia lies with the band, not the cover. Warm Tunas has this as a strong favourite, and it's only been wrong twice since it began in 2016. The bookies like it too.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> This only placed #6 in its original countdown - two other LAVs have polled higher. And it's so hyped that maybe there will be a strong cohort of voters pushing against it. Probably not, but you never know.</div><div><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">Bulls On Parade - Denzel Curry (2019)</h3><div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZY4ywyFXdik" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div></div><br /><b>Warm Tunas:</b> #2<br /><b>Sportsbet:</b> $4 (second favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing:</b> #5<br /><b>YouTube:</b> 12,750,917 views</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it will win:</b> With a tight band around him, Denzel Curry ramped up the not-so-secret ingredient in Rage Against The Machine's music - the anger - for this ball-tearing cover. Sounding more ferocious than even Zack de la Rocha, Curry's spits his own rhymes (from his track <i>Sirens</i>) in place of Tom Morello's guitar solo and in the process set a then-record for the highest placed LAV in a Hottest 100. If any song if going to top <i>Believe</i>, it's this faithfully furious diatribe against the American military industrial complex. </div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it won't win: </b>Warm Tunas and Sportsbet have this as a very clear second. It really does seem like it's DMA's' countdown to lose, and maybe there are people out there that still don't like rap and/or Rage Against The Machine and who didn't vote for this but those people are weird and you shouldn't be friends with them. </div><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">Blood - Gang Of Youths (2017)</h3><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yLTO3U5644A" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div><br /><b>Warm Tunas:</b> #3<br /><b>Sportsbet:</b> $26 (seventh favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing: </b>#41<br /><b>YouTube:</b> 5,502,447 views</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it will win:</b> This symphonic cover of <i>Blood</i> has grown in stature alongside the ever-rising star of Gang Of Youths. Originally by defunct-before-their-time Aussie indie folk band The Middle East, Gang Of Youths made it sound like a Gang Of Youths song, without losing any of the passion in the original. In fact, with their string section and Dave Le'aupepe's magnetic presence, they turn that passion up to 11. Gang Of Youths have had six songs in the top 10 of the Hottest 100 since 2017 - they're in fine form for these countdowns.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> There are 13 LAVs that finished in a higher position in a Hottest 100 countdown than this one. The bookies don't rate it much either, and YouTube plays are less than half of those for <i>Believe</i> and <i>Bulls On Parade</i>. Plus, The Middle East's original version is much loved and incredible, don't get me wrong, but it's not as universal as many of the other tunes on this shortlist. Yes, it reached #64 in the Hottest 100 of 2009 and has 59 million plays on Spotify, but, for example, <i>Bulls On Parade</i> has 359 million, Cher's <i>Believe</i> has 491 million, and even The Divinyls' <i>I Touch Myself</i> has 79 million.</div><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">I Touch Myself - Lime Cordiale (2019)</h3><div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xRjI3J__2c4" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div></div><br /><b>Warm Tunas:</b> #4<br /><b>Sportsbet:</b> $21 (fifth favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing:</b> #17<br /><b>YouTube: </b>1,373,284 views</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win:</b> We're getting deeper and deeper into hypothetical territory here but let's assume for a moment that DMA's' <i>Believe</i> isn't an unbackable favourite and turn our attention to this cheery-yet-straight-faced rendition of The Divinyls' beloved ode to self love. Lime Cordiale give the song a Lime Cordiale flavour, but it's not a million miles from the original - it's an inspired choice for the band because it suits their winking (yes, <i>winking</i>) sunshiny pop sound down to the ground. In terms of previous Hottest 100 placings for LAVs, this is in the top five, and Sportsbet has good odds on this being a top three finish, despite it only being fifth favourite. And keep in mind, Lime Cordiale have a remarkable 16 Hottest 100 entries in the past five countdowns, including eight top 20 finishes. This could be a dark horse.</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> Those YouTube view numbers are well below the previously mentioned covers, and the bookies like this as second or third, but not first. Warm Tunas has this clumped in with a big pile of songs that appear on between 14 and 12 per cent of lists. None of this bodes well for this wonderfully cheeky LAV climaxing at #1.</div><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">Elephant - The Wiggles (2021)</h3><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/a13WnqsRc5g" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Warm Tunas: </b>#14<br /><b>Sportsbet: </b>$15 (fourth favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing:</b> #1<br /><b>YouTube:</b> 5,312,136 views</div><b><br /></b><div><b>Why it will win: </b>Here it is: the only LAV to ever win a Hottest 100. One of my friends summed up its 2021 victory as exactly what we needed to cap off a shitty year of pandemic-induced depression. It was a win for hope, fun and positive vibes; a warm blanket of nostalgia created by the band that evoked a million childhoods, playing a classic tune (#7 in 2012) by one of the most popular Aussie acts of the past 15 years. It was a match made in heaven. It was the LAV we never knew we needed.</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> It was a time and a place, and there's a deep feeling that the novelty of this has worn off somewhat. It will still hit a slice of voters in the feels, but if Warm Tunas is anything to go by, this medley of <i>Elephant</i> and <i>Fruit Salad</i> is slightly past its use-by date.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: center;">Baby Come Back - Ocean Alley (2018)</h3><div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ubAbewMTUUw" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div></div><br /><b>Warm Tunas: </b>#11<br /><b>Sportsbet: </b>$23 (sixth favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing:</b> #16<br /><b>YouTube: </b>5,680,784 views</div><b><br /></b><div><b>Why it will win: </b>Ok, so today I discovered that the bass player on the original version of this song by soft rockers Player was Ronn Moss, aka Ridge from long-running US soap opera <i>The Bold & The Beautiful</i>. Mind blown. That aside, this beautiful piece of yacht rock suited Ocean Alley down to the ground, who rendered it in faithfully smooth tones. This is the fourth highest finishing LAV of all time, and it's popularity on YouTube rivals Gang Of Youths' LAV. Ocean Alley have a Hottest 100 victory under their belts, winning in the year they recorded this cover. Who knows - maybe with <i>Confidence</i> out of the running it could pave the way for this cover from the long-haired band from the Northern Beaches. </div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> A very popular cover, and will do well, but not well enough. Warm Tunas has it outside the top 10, and the bookies have it outside the top five. The original dates back to 1977 - is it that too far back for the (mostly) young voters of triple j?</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: center;">Yellow - King Stingray (2022)</h3><div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sr3iI8gg2fo" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div></div><br /><b>Warm Tunas: </b>#8<br /><b>Sportsbet: </b>$41 (equal 12th favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing:</b> #43<br /><b>YouTube:</b> 577,891 views</div><b><br /></b><div><b>Why it will win:</b> There's something bloody magical about this cover. The switch from banjo to bass. Yirrŋa Yunupiŋu singing in language. The direct power of the adapted melody. The absolute epic beauty of it all. It probably shouldn't work but it does, and that's the awesome thing about it. Leaving all the numbers and data and evidence aside, King Stingray's version of Coldplay's breakthrough anthem <i>Yellow</i> hits people in the feels. There are others likely to poll high in the countdown that similarly tug at the heartstrings - Sarah Blasko's <i>Life On Mars?</i> and Regina Spektor's <i>Real Love</i> to name but two - but for true overwhelming emotion, this is the one.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> Numbers are cold. They don't care about your feelings. They don't care that this song makes you fucking cry. They don't care that this is a beautiful moment of worlds coming together. They don't care that this is a rare instance of harmonious unity between the oldest continuous living culture on Earth and the culture that sought to wipe it out. Number don't care.</div><div><br /></div><div>Fuck numbers.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: center;">Dumb Things - A.B. Original ft Paul Kelly & Dan Sultan (2016)</h3><div><br /></div><div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ICcewg7fxho" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div></div><br /><b>Warm Tunas: </b>#6<br /><b>Sportsbet: </b>$31 (equal eighth favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing:</b> #45<br /><b>YouTube:</b> 3,655,384 views</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win:</b> It's kinda cheating to get the original artist to join you on your cover, right? Or is it a secret weapon. Briggs and Trials (aka A.B. Original) got the great man himself Paul Kelly to lay down the choruses while they slay the nation, taking PK's bar-room favourite to new polemic heights. Much like Denzel Curry on <i>Bulls On Parade</i>, or The Herd on <i>I Was Only 19</i>, this LAV shows how rap is an instrument, both musical and of social justice. </div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it won't win: </b>There's a solid top 10 finish ahead for <i>Dumb Things</i>, but it would be an unexpected, but not undeserved, win if it made it to #1. </div><div><br /></div><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">Welcome To The Black Parade - Alex Lahey (2019)</h3><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/nC_k8j8YwjU" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div><br /><b>Warm Tunas: </b>#7<br /><b>Sportsbet: </b>$51 (equal 16th favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing:</b> #83<br /><b>YouTube:</b> 1,888,440 views</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it will win:</b> Alex Lahey and her band (hey, there's G Flip!) play it straight down the line for her rendition of the great emo anthem, taking My Chemical Romance's original and covering it like they love the absolute shit out of it. They ape every bell, whistle and groove change with a punk-rock adoration, nailing a highwire performance that feels like it could fall off at any point but never does. Warm Tunas has this as part of a clump of songs appearing in 14 per cent of votes, which puts it within striking distance of fourth place, but I know what a huge sentimental favourite this is for people, and surely that counts for something right?</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it won't win:</b> The numbers aren't great on this. In fact it's only the 31st highest finishing LAV of all time, though it was the third highest in its year (behind Lime Cordiale and Denzel Curry - what a year for LAV). There's a helluva lot of love for this one, but not enough to get it across the line for #1.</div><br /><h3 style="text-align: center;">AusMusic Month Medley - Illy (2013)</h3><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="105" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/L13vI3kGMqc" title="YouTube video player" width="185"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Warm Tunas: </b>#5<br /><b>Sportsbet: </b>$13 (third favourite)<div><b>Previous Hottest 100 placing:</b> #66<br /><b>YouTube:</b> 6,255,260 views</div></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><div><b>Why it will win: </b>The bookies rate this highly - even higher than <i>Blood</i> and <i>I Touch Myself</i>. Warm Tunas puts in the top five, ahead of <i>Yellow</i> and <i>Welcome To The Black Parade</i>. It's 10 years old and a lot of people still love it. But perhaps the biggest thing working in the favour of this mashup is that it's a surreptitious way to vote for four covers in one, with references to half a dozen other songs thrown into boot. Featuring Frenzal Rhomb's Lindsay MacDougal on guitar, Kira Puru on vocals, and the same cellist from Gang Of Youths' <i>Blood</i> LAV (Hanna Oblikov, for those who are wondering), it's an all-star celebration of Aussie music that's hard to ignore.</div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Why it won't win: </b>This is a dark horse, but the medley nature that appeals to a lot of people probably turns off just as many who want to just hear a song, not a mashup, goddammit.</div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Other songs to watch out for (with original Hottest 100 placing in brackets):</b></div><div><br /></div><div><div><i>I Was Only 19</i> - The Herd, 2005 (18)</div><div><i>(Lover) You Don't Treat Me No Good</i> - Chet Faker, 2014 (21)</div><div><i>Am I Ever Gonna See Your Face Again?</i> - Dune Rats, 2022 (23)</div><div><i>Pumped Up Kicks</i> - Owl Eyes, 2011 (28)</div><div><i>Real Love</i> - Regina Spektor, 2007 (29)</div><div><i>Here Comes the Sun</i> - Spacey Jane, 2021 (30)</div><div><i>Shooting Stars</i> - Flume ft. Toro y Moi, 2022 (30)</div><div><i>Get Lucky</i> - San Cisco, 2013 (39)</div><div><i>Brother</i> - Thundamentals, 2012 (49)</div><div><i>Do I Wanna Know?</i> - Chvrches, 2014 (54)</div><div><i>Breathe/Comfortably Numb/Money</i> - Ocean Alley, 2021 (54)</div><div><i>Keeping Score</i> - Paces ft. Guy Sebastian, 2016 (56)</div></div><div><br /></div><div><b>And for the record, here are my votes:</b></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmUNUwwb2o_CYxMhiB4i3Q4Jk5lI6jtx935u_AYt9p-6E_wNBc91g4jv-j3PuwqbNdzu-nKXAELKfLZSheA64el8YuzliSC3qr-HcTZGMl-h83X3Gv0EhAGW4LXICDIo0jmcOW7MBtv4VolgczOOO3x3zTohL_YBqC21dQPhkxtomvdJxoT4-JX2NUzVk/s697/LAV%20Hottest%20100%202023.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="697" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmUNUwwb2o_CYxMhiB4i3Q4Jk5lI6jtx935u_AYt9p-6E_wNBc91g4jv-j3PuwqbNdzu-nKXAELKfLZSheA64el8YuzliSC3qr-HcTZGMl-h83X3Gv0EhAGW4LXICDIo0jmcOW7MBtv4VolgczOOO3x3zTohL_YBqC21dQPhkxtomvdJxoT4-JX2NUzVk/s320/LAV%20Hottest%20100%202023.png" width="275" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-21524237359846530232023-07-03T03:38:00.000-07:002023-07-03T03:38:35.718-07:00Indiana Jones - From Best To Worst<p style="text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkXSQXfXV9Dpnp4inmI62Uz0rNhhgiJ_CbenAWr40VcvP811kh1Ih2EGZZTyai3GF2FHfHKMqqFqI4eA5eMu-HLh7gplPECOvkbAonwX5IAenNOlAhj1Z46CtzupvP_gnpGJJx7wnIgaZ9ZojV7eiznmR6M0VTo9H07wRbfiKtgFjbu3bsJQpGBJWTKmM/s1920/raiders.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="738" data-original-width="1920" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkXSQXfXV9Dpnp4inmI62Uz0rNhhgiJ_CbenAWr40VcvP811kh1Ih2EGZZTyai3GF2FHfHKMqqFqI4eA5eMu-HLh7gplPECOvkbAonwX5IAenNOlAhj1Z46CtzupvP_gnpGJJx7wnIgaZ9ZojV7eiznmR6M0VTo9H07wRbfiKtgFjbu3bsJQpGBJWTKmM/w400-h154/raiders.jpg" width="400" /></a></p><p>Indiana Jones is no more. Or at least so says Harrison Ford and Kathleen Kennedy. Or at least so they say for now. Things may change. Some day, Chris Pratt or someone else will pull on the battered fedora and I'll go and watch the film they make, grumbling all the while before writing a begrudgingly positive review. Probably.</p><p>But until that sadly inevitable day arrives, let's mark the end of one of cinema's greatest franchises with a celebratory list. Of course, you know how this list is going to go, but I'm going to write it down anyway.</p><p><br /></p><h3 style="text-align: center;">1. Raiders Of The Lost Ark</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7mekd8noxQOJm5omksRhZDykTGXmhSAnRHFPUAVzg3vciSVbblLV1rekJ_E5g6y7Y8QF5r3tvT0sS9rgqsaFnbr3KyeJnidQj39z8rqReNuXd2ZHQSs0rp_JLJGrvkwTIQmKgXf-UkNP3C0ergloK-f-mvScwvTtR-K3SJstdNf_bV-iwWg8TMkHbis4/s4159/raiders%20of%20the%20lost%20ark.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2100" data-original-width="4159" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7mekd8noxQOJm5omksRhZDykTGXmhSAnRHFPUAVzg3vciSVbblLV1rekJ_E5g6y7Y8QF5r3tvT0sS9rgqsaFnbr3KyeJnidQj39z8rqReNuXd2ZHQSs0rp_JLJGrvkwTIQmKgXf-UkNP3C0ergloK-f-mvScwvTtR-K3SJstdNf_bV-iwWg8TMkHbis4/w400-h203/raiders%20of%20the%20lost%20ark.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div>Every single thing in this film is iconic. The costume, the score, the set pieces, the stunts, the script, the cinematography, the performances, the Harrison Ford. It's hard to fault this unsurpassed highwater for adventure films. Much like how George Lucas took his love of Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon and turned it into something new and mindblowing with <i><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2020/07/afi-13-star-wars-episode-iv-new-hope.html" target="_blank">Star Wars</a></i>, Lucas and his buddy Steven Spielberg reinvented the pulpy jungle-adventure B movies of the '40s and '50s to make the perfect action movie. Everything works. It's a rollercoaster of perfection, barrelling from one incredible moment to the next. Ford's Jones is a very human hero whose tenacity, ingenuity and dumb luck pulls him out of one scrape after another, and it's a goddamn joy to watch.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: center;">2. Indiana Jones & The Last Crusade</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4cSTQ7uzMk0vDFqhgJsvuDDjUM6xjpngrjjHFAU_9uaR8C7PGNlvAeYY5JkYQ4j3HgUtnVPM_wM0gLBRdKchU9wwaYFOzgNu21yQFz-JbI27dXnrOwpyVKuj2dxXZvDze7foBG66-sFhdB2ZavdXvuss2FoYQkko6PLgsylg7jad48e-1GUgUFpV0RNM/s706/last%20crusade.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="397" data-original-width="706" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4cSTQ7uzMk0vDFqhgJsvuDDjUM6xjpngrjjHFAU_9uaR8C7PGNlvAeYY5JkYQ4j3HgUtnVPM_wM0gLBRdKchU9wwaYFOzgNu21yQFz-JbI27dXnrOwpyVKuj2dxXZvDze7foBG66-sFhdB2ZavdXvuss2FoYQkko6PLgsylg7jad48e-1GUgUFpV0RNM/w400-h225/last%20crusade.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div>The Indiana Jones films are not renowned for their thematic depth, but it's there if you're willing to look. <i>Raiders</i> is ultimately a story about how the quest for power is its own undoing, <i>Temple Of Doom</i> is about control over the less fortunate, and the light that must stand to fight against the darkness within man, but it's <i>Last Crusade</i> that is the deepest and most poignant of the original trilogy. It's a tale of faith and obsession, and about fathers and sons, and all the prickly issues that come with that. In one of the greatest casting moves in history, Sean Connery joined the franchise as Indy's dad, and this would be a far lesser film without him. The film apes Raiders' tone and pace, and almost equals the original in terms of iconic sequences. The young Indy opening, the tank chase, the Grail challenges - they're all part of the heart-stopping fun that makes this a scintillating widescreen adventure.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: center;">3. Indiana Jones & The Temple Of Doom</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCBO4pLYYq9ZiZnwsnnQl9MqA4Krv5b0j0gHbWbrzSVE5Pz2BM6BpYujBVG_eQxw1bzX-m6kMg6j_EWm_VPeJS9-IK5wpb-AjtfBTPgechIF4B5xdFaYCuqnVYRyh9mjP1RzphQ0SeoQw1ZdA4U_OhXYQJHRZOD8SYztJ3ZBCgR94b7SyhIMsA5KBz58/s1920/Temple-of-Doom-Bridge-1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZCBO4pLYYq9ZiZnwsnnQl9MqA4Krv5b0j0gHbWbrzSVE5Pz2BM6BpYujBVG_eQxw1bzX-m6kMg6j_EWm_VPeJS9-IK5wpb-AjtfBTPgechIF4B5xdFaYCuqnVYRyh9mjP1RzphQ0SeoQw1ZdA4U_OhXYQJHRZOD8SYztJ3ZBCgR94b7SyhIMsA5KBz58/w400-h225/Temple-of-Doom-Bridge-1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div>The dark one. Hearts are removed, kids are tortured, people are set alight, and brains are eaten (those poor monkeys), but these things don't make it a bad film. In fact it's a great film, another rollicking adventure that tries to take the formula of the first and push it further. Even if some of its set pieces push the limits (the inflatable raft drop, the minecart chase, the rope bridge fight), they're still wonderful sequences that have us cheering from the edge of our seats. With its added darkness comes added tension, and <i>Temple Of Doom</i> hits faster and harder than any other film in the franchise. </div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: center;">4. Indiana Jones & The Dial Of Destiny</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9QB9Ewxd0PVSJjwPt06De7_ZXU6G7UII_YmR_5rm4jsKPfC7sWj58-9xXazSifhAaJf7Kf2W5_LYjwVqVc23zJ47h2JGTMQ3InVvNmUndUkhrjsS2tC95bEm-p2nTxhs6mF89_xDTfkj4VzEv6gEs0Byt5W0jsvfxuBmm97KExJjo_o3cWsoeA384Ilw/s800/indiana%20jones%20dial%20of%20destiny.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9QB9Ewxd0PVSJjwPt06De7_ZXU6G7UII_YmR_5rm4jsKPfC7sWj58-9xXazSifhAaJf7Kf2W5_LYjwVqVc23zJ47h2JGTMQ3InVvNmUndUkhrjsS2tC95bEm-p2nTxhs6mF89_xDTfkj4VzEv6gEs0Byt5W0jsvfxuBmm97KExJjo_o3cWsoeA384Ilw/w400-h266/indiana%20jones%20dial%20of%20destiny.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2023/06/indiana-jones-dial-of-destiny.html" target="_blank">Read my full review here.</a></div><div><br /></div><div>An 80-year-old Ford plays a 70-year-old Indy in a bold and often bonkers attempt to give the whip-cracking archaeologist the farewell he deserves. Its themes of regret and life passing us by add layers to the adventure, and also feed into the MacGuffin and the somewhat subdued but solid villain (played by Mads Mikkelsen). Waller-Bridge is a fine companion, and Ford gives his best performance of the series. The opening and ending are iconic, but some of what happens in between drags.</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: center;">5. Indiana Jones & The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull</h3><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLLR_vFsN6t1wWdLfPTrGAznuYeEXFvcY6X_B0yugbDgcwK0G3q6vo29oxtxFFvFsC_ABQLSQWPfSwdKX3Tx6D7ZmEtquz1FlJohIBMq7QQuzuv-V_PznSNtNVhvSnv_bhbZ1_xgS_D1FzXVs6e-6h4H-aPQAvSwD7buCa4OF2DUyqZfCm9Fp2TgCfv-E/s640/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLLR_vFsN6t1wWdLfPTrGAznuYeEXFvcY6X_B0yugbDgcwK0G3q6vo29oxtxFFvFsC_ABQLSQWPfSwdKX3Tx6D7ZmEtquz1FlJohIBMq7QQuzuv-V_PznSNtNVhvSnv_bhbZ1_xgS_D1FzXVs6e-6h4H-aPQAvSwD7buCa4OF2DUyqZfCm9Fp2TgCfv-E/w400-h225/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br /><div>Cate Blanchett is a remarkable actress, one of the greatest of all time, but as soon as she rolls up "chewing those wouble-yoos", it's clear <i>Crystal Skull</i> is going to be a goofy disappointment. From its overlong title (why the everloving fuck isn't it just called <i>Indiana Jones & The Crystal Skull</i>?) to its hair-combing, Tarzan-aping sidekick Mutt, this film is more cheesy homage than genuine sequel. And you know what? I like the "nuking the fridge" sequence, I don't hate the MacGuffin, and even in spite of the goofiness, it's kinda fun in places. But there's a lot to dislike. Ray Winstone's Mac is utterly superfluous, Mutt is a caricature, and the script is one bleeding obvious line after the other. Oh, <a href="https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/the-indiana-jones-films-that-never-were/" target="_blank">what might have been</a>.</div><div><br /></div><p><br /></p>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-26483106365974449212023-06-29T04:41:00.000-07:002023-06-29T04:41:07.067-07:00Indiana Jones & The Dial Of Destiny<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Radio across regional Victoria on July 6, 2023.<br /></i><br /><b>(M) ★★★<br /><br />Director: James Mangold.<br /><br />Cast: Harrison Ford, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Mads Mikkelsen, Antonio Banderas, Toby Jones, Boyd Holbrook, Ethann Isidore, Shaunette Renée Wilson, Thomas Kretschmann.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDoiFuYXMnYEQSFbIwhdMdNegI3NVYOtH9rMPlBVub6r07mmY1kDXqQJNKeBO0gZPZJQ4VfokhV1HWhb4MHceqZxMcIZ262t2lM0dfOaxxjHtRpWNMIYdUfLWMXwZrc8kEc-YP7g_LnGS-KA1hV8lRevsRnwLzPbtSSFr-qrUzVVxDgagjacXIkQrVpWk/s800/indiana%20jones%20dial%20of%20destiny.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="533" data-original-width="800" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDoiFuYXMnYEQSFbIwhdMdNegI3NVYOtH9rMPlBVub6r07mmY1kDXqQJNKeBO0gZPZJQ4VfokhV1HWhb4MHceqZxMcIZ262t2lM0dfOaxxjHtRpWNMIYdUfLWMXwZrc8kEc-YP7g_LnGS-KA1hV8lRevsRnwLzPbtSSFr-qrUzVVxDgagjacXIkQrVpWk/w400-h266/indiana%20jones%20dial%20of%20destiny.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It turned out that "spelunking" didn't mean what she thought it meant.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />For a generation of fans of a certain age, the first three Indiana Jones movies set the benchmark for escapist entertainment. They were, and are, the ultimate adventure films thanks to their classic set-pieces, a rampaging score, and one of cinema's most iconic heroes. In many a young mind, they inspired an interest in everything from archaeology and Biblical historicity to stuntwork and whipcracking. <div><br /></div><div>I land firmly within that generation. I've seen <i>Raiders Of The Lost Ark</i> more times than probably any other film. I've read the books and the comics, played <i>The Fate Of Atlantis</i>, cracked a whip, and dressed as Jones for a fancy dress party. I've even seen <i>Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull</i> three times. For me, any Indiana Jones is better than no Indiana Jones. </div><div><br /></div><div>Setting this high level of bias aside, I can say confidently that the fifth and final outing of Professor Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, Jr., Ph.D. is solidly good without being great. It fails to reach the lofty heights of the first three films, but nails the tone of the series better than <i>Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull</i>. It's authentically Indiana Jones, even though it's lacking in some departments and gets very weird in its final act.</div><div><br /></div><div>After an opening sequence set during WWII featuring a CGI de-aged Indiana Jones, the film finds a 70-year-old Indy (played by an 80-year-old Ford) preparing for retirement in 1969. But a visit from his god-daughter Helena Shaw (Waller-Bridge) sets him on the trail of the film's MacGuffin - the Dial of Destiny. The powerful yet broken relic not only sent Helena's father Basil Shaw (Jones) mad, but it's also the target of a former Nazi scientist (Mikkelsen), hellbent on using the dial to correct some of Hitler's mistakes.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eQfMbSe7F2g" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div>Re-watching <i>Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull</i> recently, I was struck by how that film's tone was ever-so-slightly off compared with the previous three Indy adventures. It accidentally erred towards goofy instead of charmingly amusing, its wackiness sucking a little too much of the tension out of proceedings. In <i>Dial Of Destiny</i>, the tone is spot on. The humour has a sincerity that avoids <i>Crystal Skull</i>'s wink-at-the-audience silliness. <i>Dial Of Destiny</i> keeps its integrity and its sense of danger close to hand amid the silliness.</div><div><br /></div><div>This means that even when the film ends up in a very strange place in the final third, we can still get a beautifully heartfelt moment and a hearty laugh out of it. It means that amid the seemingly endless car chases, the gags land and we worry this will be one scrape too many for this surprisingly spritely old man.</div><div><br /></div><div>Age has certainly wearied Indiana Jones, even if Harrison Ford is in absurdly good shape for an octogenarian. That's a factor in <i>Dial Of Destiny</i> in so many ways, some good, some bad. It adds a certain thematic and emotional richness to the film in places - something not seen so prominently in the franchise outside of <i>Last Crusade</i>. Jones sees the world has passed him by in some moments, which is hard to take for him and the audience. He's as much of a relic as the ones he teaches about or recovers from lost temples. But his senior citizen status does bring its own "ooh, there goes a hip" kind of thinking to some of the action scenes.</div><div><br /></div><div>Somehow it mostly works. The action set pieces - most notably an opening sequence involving a train full of Nazis and an early horse ride through a New York subway - are good, though a few more with iconic ambition would have been better than yet another car chase. Having very punchable Nazis as the baddies is a great move, Mikkelsen avoids chewing the scenery but brings a studied menace to his role, while Waller-Bridge makes a fantastic companion for Jones. </div><div><br /></div><div>As for Ford, it's one of his better performances, and easily the most well-rounded piece of acting he's delivered in the franchise. He always made Jones a man who could be hit and be hurt, but a desire to do what's right (mixed with bloody-minded stubbornness) always got him back on his feet. In <i>Dial Of Destiny</i>, Jones has been hit and hurt so much he's slightly broken, and he's angry at the world because of it. He's still bloody-mindedly stubborn and driven by a strong moral compass, but he has also kinda given up. And having nothing left to care about makes him dangerous. Somehow, Ford conveys all that - the rage, the fragility, the danger, the emptiness - and makes Indy more interesting than he's ever been.</div><div><br /></div><div>Overall it's a bit long (I blame the car chases), some of it feels kinda tepid or lazily plotted, and the ending is going to take some getting used to, but it has its heart and its tone and its fedora in the right place. Is it a fitting end to all Indiana Jones movies? Its final moments are subversively perfect in one sense, while in another sense, they can't match the wit of <i>Raiders</i>' conclusion or the grandeur of <i>Last Crusade</i>'s.</div><div><br /></div><div>But like I said, any Indiana Jones is better than no Indiana Jones. And if this is the end, well, thank you, Indiana Jones. It's been a wild ride, and we've loved every minute of it. Even the bit where you dodged a nuclear blast by hiding in a lead-lined fridge.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-77454319927008704152023-06-17T22:55:00.002-07:002023-06-17T22:55:44.924-07:00Elemental<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Radio across regional Victoria on June 22, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(PG) ★★★<br /><br /></b><div><b>Director: Peter Sohn.</b></div><div><b><br /></b></div><div><b>Cast: (voices of) Leah Lewis, Mamoudou Athie, Ronnie del Carmen, Shila Ommi, Mason Wertheimer, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Catherine O'Hara.</b></div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuOVLB2gGwqG3KKVxhAH6XavwsPzBV18lAAPxq9ep_KQ26IfI8gqfKUYtWRj80t9Mwve5uOUyx5NFzUi3FY-1mCZaQGIdru0Y5XguxEI7G_Q5NGIUBjADEdPo8DLtqEkKqqr-N8qjpAqWifWhfT709ZGFC8yvmOKwQznPtmwHJpeMVRKHZ7nRlJww-/s1298/elemental.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="730" data-original-width="1298" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuOVLB2gGwqG3KKVxhAH6XavwsPzBV18lAAPxq9ep_KQ26IfI8gqfKUYtWRj80t9Mwve5uOUyx5NFzUi3FY-1mCZaQGIdru0Y5XguxEI7G_Q5NGIUBjADEdPo8DLtqEkKqqr-N8qjpAqWifWhfT709ZGFC8yvmOKwQznPtmwHJpeMVRKHZ7nRlJww-/w400-h225/elemental.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"What makes you think we overwatered and then set fire to the plants?"</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Water falls in love with fire. That's the elevator pitch here. Oh, and it's a reflection on the immigrant experience. And it's made by Pixar. How could it miss?<br /><div><br /></div><div>Pixar films are great at being several things at once. <i>Inside Out</i> is about anthropomorphic personifications of feelings go on a twisted journey through the human mind, but it's also about becoming a teenager and leaving childhood behind, plus the power and necessity of all our emotions. <i>The Incredibles</i> is a superhero movie, but it's also about being true to yourself, and what makes everyone special. <i>Finding Nemo</i> & <i>Dory</i> are great adventures, but are also about disability. This combination of deep themes and all-ages entertainment is the secret to Pixar's success.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Elemental</i> is great at juggling its surface love story and its deeper immigrant themes, but, oddly, it only does a passable job at getting all the, ahem, elements to work together across the whole of its runtime. As a result, <i>Elemental</i> is good, not great. Maybe that says more about the "great expectations" that come with each new Pixar film, and maybe I'm wrong - I was wrong about <i>Ratatouille</i> after my first viewing. But <i>Elemental</i> has all the necessary pieces, yet it can't get the puzzle to fit together like you'd hope.<br /><div><br /></div><div><div>The romantic odd couple here are Ember, the fiery daughter of immigrants, who is destined to take over the family business, and Wade, the wet son of privileged upper class water elements, who works as a council inspector. Wade literally spills into Ember's life and puts Ember's family business at risk of closure, but the pair soon have to work together to find the source of a major water leak that threatens to cause major damage and loss of life in Fire Town.</div><div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hXzcyx9V0xw" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div></div><div><br /></div><div>Firstly: don't think too hard about the physics of <i>Elemental</i>, otherwise it will start doing your head in. Why is water different in its water form to its person form when a Water Person can disappear into the water water? And how come the heat of a fire person... anyway, I need to stop thinking about this, or I'll get a headache.</div><div><br /></div><div>But, more importantly, its the story that seems to have pieces missing from the equation. A moment where a character professes their desire to see a particular flower as a child seemingly comes out of nowhere, leading to a beautiful but ultimately distracting divergence. And given we don't see a single other example of a Fire Person romantically or even platonically involved with a Water Person, it feels like their relationship doesn't attract as much interest/attention as it could or should. Similarly, a subplot about a leak threatening Fire Town feels underdeveloped - was there a villain removed from the story? And why aren't more people concerned about this leak given it could literally kill thousands of people?</div><div><br /></div><div>The film really hits its stride when Wade and Ember are forced to work together and their romance can blossom, but getting there is a bit of a struggle. What's consistently good is the world creation (physics questions aside) - the otherness of the Fire People is captured wonderfully, and their experience will no doubt speak volumes to people from migrant backgrounds - but dotted in between are story elements that don't flow as beautifully as a Water Person on a slide.</div><div><br /></div><div>The characters are great, and the visuals are impressive, even if the cartoonish nature of the Fire and Water People is sometimes jarring against the real-looking objects they interact with. Still, it's a wonderful feat of animation to make everything as stunning as it is. Fire and water are two notoriously difficult elements to animate, but Pixar takes such challenges in its stride these days.</div><div><br /></div><div>Lewis and Athie give vibrant performances, with Athie somehow making Wade's predilection for bursting into tears believable. There's a strong support cast as usual, and the match of voice-to-character is an under-rated part of Pixar's magic.</div><div><br /></div><div>Enjoyable and beautiful, <i>Elemental</i> manages to nail its themes and its love story, but doesn't flow or sizzle quite like its fire-water combo suggests it should.</div></div></div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-54310934168912874422023-06-07T16:08:00.000-07:002023-06-07T16:08:40.523-07:00Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (no spoilers)<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Radio across regional Victoria on June 8, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(PG) ★★★★<br /><br />Director: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers & Justin K. Thompson.<br /><br />Cast: (voices of) Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Brian Tyree Henry, Luna Lauren Vélez, Jake Johnson, Jason Schwartzman, Issa Rae, Karan Soni, Daniel Kaluuya, Oscar Isaac, Shea Whigham.</b><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg13LYRSyXlDNJG40Q_rLzGxsRLdh2wwLssLsq7ht-Xg_cI70lzXxbM8rqjOXit0pqgYLsLU764L3fQOg04fdOLTEfV1BD3nMTcKODj2hThCbdBnUvuuDTQRs8FomG0h87XK-ozW5uX2px1SzmzzPuba4nGDLvnnvOYRxBbO7iv0yUZ1GKKhY0zByMe/s1415/spiderman_versions_across_the_spiderverse.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="795" data-original-width="1415" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg13LYRSyXlDNJG40Q_rLzGxsRLdh2wwLssLsq7ht-Xg_cI70lzXxbM8rqjOXit0pqgYLsLU764L3fQOg04fdOLTEfV1BD3nMTcKODj2hThCbdBnUvuuDTQRs8FomG0h87XK-ozW5uX2px1SzmzzPuba4nGDLvnnvOYRxBbO7iv0yUZ1GKKhY0zByMe/w400-h225/spiderman_versions_across_the_spiderverse.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Come-As-Your-Favourite-Superhero Day was as predictable as ever.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />So you've made <a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2018/12/spider-man-into-spider-verse.html" target="_blank">a successful Spidey-movie</a>. In fact some say <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NRjAGqqqNGs" target="_blank">you've made the greatest comic book movie of all time</a>. Your success can buy you creative freedom, and the power to tell yet more Spidey-stories.</div><div><br /></div><div>But with great power, comes great responsibility (phew, got there in the end). After all, there is a rich web of Spidey-tales to honour and be true to, even while weaving a brand new strand. This is both the curse and the beauty of Spider-man storytelling in this day and age. Much like Batman, we are so familiar with the origin stories and <i>raison d'êtres</i> that we don't even need to have them explained, but it means you need to do something different and fresh each time because of that familiarity. </div><div><br /></div><div>But with great familiarity can come great innovation. Batman and Spider-man are ideal for telling a range of different stories in a range of different styles for this very reason. Want a noirish detective story? Both can work for that. Manga and anime? Go right ahead. Or, as is the case in <i>Across The Spider-Verse</i>, you can use a Spider-man story to explore the very nature of Spider-man stories. <i><a href="https://movies8mylife.blogspot.com/2021/12/spider-man-no-way-home-no-spoilers.html" target="_blank">No Way Home</a></i> did a similar thing, digging into what makes Spider-man Spider-man via the multiverse, but <i>Across The Spider-verse</i> goes even more meta. And a little bit crazy. In a good way.</div><div><br /></div><div>The story again follows Miles Morales (Moore) AKA Spider-Man, 16 months on from his first adventure. It finds him more at home with his powers, but still struggling with his responsibilities. A new villain named Spot (Schwartzman) is giving him grief, he's finding it hard to balance his school/home life with his web-slinging life, and he misses Gwen Stacy (Steinfeld) AKA Ghost-Spider/Spider-Woman.</div><div><br /></div><div>But when Gwen drops in from the multiverse, Miles finds there are more Spider-people out there than he ever imagined, and their role in the multiverse is more complicated than he ever realised.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/shW9i6k8cB0" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div>Basically, like most sequels, <i>Across The Spider-Verse</i> is about doing "more" of everything. More of the insanely inventive visuals, more Spider-people to explore in relation to the mythos, more gags, more action, more everything. Chaotic, ferociously paced, frenetic and fun, <i>Across The Spider-Verse</i> almost goes too far in this more-is-more approach. Some action sequences only just stay on the right side of being too much, and the blurring of visual styles can be jarring and hard to take in some moments.</div><div><br /></div><div>But the sequel is also excellent at expanding the themes of the first film. Whereas <i>Into The Spider-Verse </i>was very focused on the perils of teenage life, this one spends a welcome amount of time on the perils of being a parent of a teenager. The nature of what Spider-Man is and what he represents is taken to an exaggerated post-modern level, which actually gives the film a lot of its central tension.</div><div><br /></div><div>Despite this bigger-is-better approach, the film still works. It's as fun and free as the first, though there's a dark undercurrent that grows as it barrels towards its cliffhanger ending (<i>Beyond The Spider-Verse</i> is due out in March next year). And it never forgets where its heart lies, which is in the teenage chests of its two main heroes. Their respective plights are painted in metaphorically rich colours to match the literal visual splendour going on around them.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Into The Spider-Verse</i> was undoubtedly one of the great superhero movies, and easily one of the most important animated films of the past 20 years. That's a tough act to follow, but <i>Across The Spider-Verse</i> lives up to its predecessor, continuing to spin another vibrant thread in the tangled web of Spidey-stories.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7771179804756713464.post-33092461958393881912023-05-22T05:05:00.001-07:002023-05-22T05:05:13.039-07:00John Farnham: Finding The Voice<i>This is a version of a review airing on ABC Radio across regional Victoria on May 25, 2023.</i><br /><br /><b>(M) ★★★★★<br /><br />Director: Poppy Stockell.</b><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz2k7LQSTwOEo-RMAjtIhtmJ6RjshvgSp8dvnE8Yz-AAEvwqoUowcmxitq0Cq9-9D1yEEmtD6uU9lLTeujysFvaA993Kej9vY4HB9ug6nh6BcKohR-Aef29dFWtmO7jqVYEvEarw_nSXBYwCS9OguOwv3qXj5YDtb8wM2lPqnBaXgalpLPfZbai8Of/s1200/john%20farnham.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1200" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz2k7LQSTwOEo-RMAjtIhtmJ6RjshvgSp8dvnE8Yz-AAEvwqoUowcmxitq0Cq9-9D1yEEmtD6uU9lLTeujysFvaA993Kej9vY4HB9ug6nh6BcKohR-Aef29dFWtmO7jqVYEvEarw_nSXBYwCS9OguOwv3qXj5YDtb8wM2lPqnBaXgalpLPfZbai8Of/w400-h300/john%20farnham.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"<i>Bring forth the mollusk, cast unto me...</i>."</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>No matter how popular John Farnham got - and he got about as popular as you can get in Australia in the '80s - he always seemed to retain his humility and his humour. In a country renowned for cutting down its tall poppies, the best we could muster against Whispering Jack himself was to poke fun at how many farewell tours he did. And even when his music became old-fashioned and out-of-touch, hearing <i>You're The Voice</i> on the radio could still send tingles up your Southern Cross. We, as a nation, love John Farnham, and this doco reminds us why that love is such a worthwhile one.</div><div><br /></div><div><i>Finding Your Voice</i> gives us the story of John Farnham the Underdog - the popstar who had it and lost it before he even realised he had it, and who then had to claw his way back. It's the story of a singer who had to wait until he was almost 40 to finally take control of his career and make the record he really wanted to make, which in turn became a smash hit beyond all other smash hits in this country. </div><div><br /></div><div>But it's also a beautiful love story about two mates. Farnham's tale is impossible to tell without a significant amount of the spotlight also being shone on his best friend/manager Glenn Wheatley - the man who mortgaged his house so his friend could make that long-awaited career-defining record.</div><div><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/LocCfc5PKrE" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe></div><div><br /></div><div>These stories are told in an unassuming fashion befitting an Aussie idol who never lost his working class roots. There is no pretence here - the doco walks us through his life some start to present. We get the early highs of <i>Sadie</i> and <i>Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head</i>, followed by the crushing lows of the '70s and his stint with Little River Band.</div><div><br /></div><div>Naturally the film peaks with <i>You're The Voice</i> and spends a lot of time with that song, positioning it as the triumphant comeback many people forget that it was. It means Farnham's career after that gets shorter shrift here, but that's ok - Stockell has structured Farnham's story beautifully for full dramatic impact.</div><div><br /></div><div>We don't see present-day Farnham in the film - we only hear him - and coupled with its sad final moments makes the whole thing feel like an obituary. And that's ok - too often we don't fully appreciate our great talents until they're gone, so why not pay powerful tearful tribute while they're still around. </div><div><br /></div><div>For those of us who have forgotten the power, influence and place Farnham's music has had in our culture, <i>Finding Your Voice</i> is a timely reminder of his greatness, talent and his remarkable triumph. For everyone else, sit back and enjoy one of the great Aussie success stories, writ large on the big screen, as befits a man with a big voice.</div>DrMattNealhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15474157744923536896noreply@blogger.com0