Roger Donaldson's high-tension thriller The Bank Job, inspired by an actual 1971 heist, thieves tunnel into a bank vault in Central London, pry open its safety-deposit boxes, and haul off the loot - only to learn that cash and jewels are the least valuable objects in their rucksacks.
The unexpected twist, is something that could be found in a Bond movie, depositors are too ashamed or afraid to itemize the stolen goods. And the government puts a gag order on reporters because coverage poses a threat to national security.
It seems that the Marylebone branch of Lloyds of London is the preferred vault of madams, pornographers and drug dealers who, for purposes of blackmail, stow sexually incriminating photos and payoff ledgers there. From Buckingham Palace to Parliament to police precincts across town, authorities have much to fear if the contents of the fireproof metal boxes are made public.
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Not that Terry Leather (Jason Statham), an East End roughneck who imagines himself the heist master, is aware of such subtleties. When his ex, Martine (Saffron Burrows), whispers that there will be an interruption of service in the alarm system at Lloyd's and that they can mole in and out of the vault undetected, he's game.
Little does Terry know that the robbery's actual mastermind is another of Martine's beaus, Tim (Richard Lintern). He's a James Bond-type on her majesty's secret service, charged with recovering photos of a royal in a compromising position. When Terry recognizes that he and his mates have been set up to get their hands dirty to keep those of the posh people clean, he does some quick thinking that is as vastly satisfying as it is highly unlikely.
Donaldson, deft maker of kindred political intrigues such as Marie, No Way Out, and Thirteen Days, directs in a wry, spry style, propelling viewers through the densely plotted story that connects the high-born to low-lifes.
The period details and performances are nicely underplayed, particularly by Statham and the hypnotic David Suchet as a Soho pornographer. All in all, the film written by Dick Clement and Ian LaFrenais (The Commitments, Across the Universe) feels both absolutely of the 1970s and absolutely fresh.
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Tuesday 25 March 2008
Saturday 15 March 2008
Is This The Number 1 Movie of all Time
Gone with the Wind
The setting is a Georgia plantation. The year is 1861, and sixteen-year-old Scarlett O'Hara is infatuated with the blond, drowsy-eyed Ashley Wilkes - the problem is, Ashley plans to marry another woman. Little matter that every other man in the county is courting Scarlett and that a charming scoundrel named Rhett Butler is staring at her with questionable intent - she cares only for Ashley.
Suddenly, the Civil War brakes out, changing the fates and fortunes of all. Scarlett, clever, manipulative, and charming, proves an adept survivor - but what will she have to do to survive? And will she ever learn whom it is that she really loves?
GWTW is one of the most meticulously cast films ever; with the possible exception of Leslie Howard as Ashley (in his forties, rather old to be playing a man half that age), every role was perfectly assigned. After you watch Vivien Leigh you will be unable to imagine anyone else playing Scarlett, and Hattie McDaniel's strong, unforgettable performance as "Mammy" netted her an academy award (the first for an African-American actor).
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GWTW's backdrop is the gruesome Civil War, and in the end this film is the story a woman and a civilization (the Old South) going through a war that will not leave either of them unchanged.
The cinematography is beautiful, memorable. Gone With the Wind was shot entirely in gorgeous technicolor; the scene of the fire in Atlanta required the use of all eight technicolor cameras in existence at the time.
The pragmatic may think Gone with the Wind overly dramatic; the restless may find it too long; the action-stimulated, too subtle. None of this, however, detracts from the fact that GWTW retains a lasting appeal as one of the crowning cinematic achievements of the 20th century. Those who see its ending as depressing - tragic, even - perhaps miss the point - which Scarlett O'Hara makes in her very last instant with us, tear-stained eyes uplifted in a sudden, curious burst of hope beneath all the turmoil; that .. . "After all, tomorrow is another day
Download it here
The setting is a Georgia plantation. The year is 1861, and sixteen-year-old Scarlett O'Hara is infatuated with the blond, drowsy-eyed Ashley Wilkes - the problem is, Ashley plans to marry another woman. Little matter that every other man in the county is courting Scarlett and that a charming scoundrel named Rhett Butler is staring at her with questionable intent - she cares only for Ashley.
Suddenly, the Civil War brakes out, changing the fates and fortunes of all. Scarlett, clever, manipulative, and charming, proves an adept survivor - but what will she have to do to survive? And will she ever learn whom it is that she really loves?
GWTW is one of the most meticulously cast films ever; with the possible exception of Leslie Howard as Ashley (in his forties, rather old to be playing a man half that age), every role was perfectly assigned. After you watch Vivien Leigh you will be unable to imagine anyone else playing Scarlett, and Hattie McDaniel's strong, unforgettable performance as "Mammy" netted her an academy award (the first for an African-American actor).
==================================================
Editors note
Download Movies
==================================================
GWTW's backdrop is the gruesome Civil War, and in the end this film is the story a woman and a civilization (the Old South) going through a war that will not leave either of them unchanged.
The cinematography is beautiful, memorable. Gone With the Wind was shot entirely in gorgeous technicolor; the scene of the fire in Atlanta required the use of all eight technicolor cameras in existence at the time.
The pragmatic may think Gone with the Wind overly dramatic; the restless may find it too long; the action-stimulated, too subtle. None of this, however, detracts from the fact that GWTW retains a lasting appeal as one of the crowning cinematic achievements of the 20th century. Those who see its ending as depressing - tragic, even - perhaps miss the point - which Scarlett O'Hara makes in her very last instant with us, tear-stained eyes uplifted in a sudden, curious burst of hope beneath all the turmoil; that .. . "After all, tomorrow is another day
Download it here
Wednesday 12 March 2008
Sleuth
The plot details remain the same. Handsome hairdresser Tindle (Jude Law) turns up at the opulent, gadget-laden home of crime novelist Wyke (Michael Caine), whose wife he has been seeing for some time. Tindle wants Wyke to grant a divorce, but the crafty writer is having none of it, and he has his own plan for revenge against this cocky young philanderer. The stage is set for a battle of wits which grows increasingly tense and dangerous as the night drags on, and which ultimately ends in murder – or does it?
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Editors Note
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It's an inherently stagey setup – just as it was in Joseph L Mankiewicz's mildly entertaining 1972 film – but Branagh's attempts to spice it up visually just get in the way of the drama. He goes overload on the tricksy camera angles, garish lighting, and some bizarre production design which leaves Wyke's house resembling the lair of a 1970's Bond villain. The picture is cluttered, with the director failing to give his story enough breathing space to make an impact on the viewer. Branagh has also shorn over 50 minutes from the original film, but even at this brisk length his Sleuth can't sustain itself, with Pinter's coarse, blunt dialogue getting old very quickly, and the whole thing sliding into homoerotic lunacy in its final third.
==================================================
Editors Note
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==================================================
It's an inherently stagey setup – just as it was in Joseph L Mankiewicz's mildly entertaining 1972 film – but Branagh's attempts to spice it up visually just get in the way of the drama. He goes overload on the tricksy camera angles, garish lighting, and some bizarre production design which leaves Wyke's house resembling the lair of a 1970's Bond villain. The picture is cluttered, with the director failing to give his story enough breathing space to make an impact on the viewer. Branagh has also shorn over 50 minutes from the original film, but even at this brisk length his Sleuth can't sustain itself, with Pinter's coarse, blunt dialogue getting old very quickly, and the whole thing sliding into homoerotic lunacy in its final third.
Saturday 8 March 2008
From Books to Films
Classic books are typically defined by their durability; they demand to be read and re-read, and still manage to deliver something new to the reader each time. Despite a spotty track record, adapting one of these books for the screen is an old gimmick in Hollywood. And as any book-lover knows, the movie is rarely, if ever, better than the book -- but a side-by-side comparison is not only problematic, but unfair. After all, these are vastly different media forms with equally difficult criteria. With that in mind, the following five adaptations are classic films because they did the seemingly improbable: They took highly regarded source material, stayed largely true to each novel and still delivered films that will reward the viewer each time he revisits them -- just as the books have.
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The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Dashiell Hammett’s classic detective novel meets John Huston’s dark screenplay in the movie that many consider to have founded the noir genre. Bogart is dynamite as the sardonic, hard-boiled Sam Spade facing off against Mary Astor’s brutal femme fatale in a flick loaded with ingenious twists and turns. Almost six decades after its premiere, Huston’s film remains a benchmark in book adaptations not for its strict commitment to plot or character, but for its uncanny rapport with the dark tonal corners of Hammett’s novel.
The Godfather (1972)
In The Godfather, novelist Mario Puzo and filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola collaborated on a screenplay for the ages. And take another look at that cast: Brando, Pacino, Caan, Keaton, and Duvall. This is a crack cast in the 21st century, nevermind in 1972. Understandably, in the move from print to screen, Puzo and Coppola had to lose a few rather important sub-plots, but when the end product is this ferocious and this electrifying, the ends absolutely justify the means.
Jaws (1975)
In Jaws, a young Spielberg proves himself to be a master of suspense. How? Chiefly by creating a monster, but only very slowly, letting you know it’s there through heart-racing insinuation. Considering the relative suspension of disbelief required for the shark itself, this is a brilliant decision. By the time Jaws rears his teeth, you’ve bought into him hook, line and sinker. With novelist Peter Benchley getting main screenplay credits, this is as good an adaptation of horror as you’re likely to find.
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Editor note
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The Maltese Falcon (1941)
Dashiell Hammett’s classic detective novel meets John Huston’s dark screenplay in the movie that many consider to have founded the noir genre. Bogart is dynamite as the sardonic, hard-boiled Sam Spade facing off against Mary Astor’s brutal femme fatale in a flick loaded with ingenious twists and turns. Almost six decades after its premiere, Huston’s film remains a benchmark in book adaptations not for its strict commitment to plot or character, but for its uncanny rapport with the dark tonal corners of Hammett’s novel.
The Godfather (1972)
In The Godfather, novelist Mario Puzo and filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola collaborated on a screenplay for the ages. And take another look at that cast: Brando, Pacino, Caan, Keaton, and Duvall. This is a crack cast in the 21st century, nevermind in 1972. Understandably, in the move from print to screen, Puzo and Coppola had to lose a few rather important sub-plots, but when the end product is this ferocious and this electrifying, the ends absolutely justify the means.
Jaws (1975)
In Jaws, a young Spielberg proves himself to be a master of suspense. How? Chiefly by creating a monster, but only very slowly, letting you know it’s there through heart-racing insinuation. Considering the relative suspension of disbelief required for the shark itself, this is a brilliant decision. By the time Jaws rears his teeth, you’ve bought into him hook, line and sinker. With novelist Peter Benchley getting main screenplay credits, this is as good an adaptation of horror as you’re likely to find.
Friday 7 March 2008
Movie Posters
Each film studio maintained its own offices (or exchange as it was known) in every major city. The studios would send the films and their posters to all the exchanges and from there, they would be distributed to the surrounding theaters. The bigger city theaters would just go to the exchange and pick up the films and posters right before they would show them. If it was a big film they might order extra posters this wasy they could make a more elaborate display. Theaters in smaller towns would often receive their films via bus. The films would be in containers that would have the posters (often just one or two one-sheets and a set of lobby cards) tucked in a pouch on the outside of the container.
Back in the 1940's most theaters would show a film for 3 or 4 days (as part of a program that might include 2 features, a cartoon, a newsreel, and possibly a serial chapter), and then send it on (via bus) to the next theater. Often the theater manager would put the film on a late night bus right after his last showing and it would arrive at the next theater the following morning, in time to be displayed for that night's show. The film might go by bus through a circuit of many theaters before returning to an exchange. After the film returned to the exchange, it would go back out to other theaters, and often the posters had to be replaced, as they were torn and tattered from being put up and taken down several times.
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So you can understand why posters from before 1940 are extremely rare. Theater owners couldn't give their posters to collectors, no matter how hard they begged, because they were needed at the next theater. This whole system of having to deal with each studio separately might sound very inefficient, but remember that in the 1920s and 1930s many theaters were owned by the studios and so only showed that studio's product; and most of the independents would only get their films from a couple of studios, so it wasn't that complicated.
But if all the posters were returned with the films, how are there any posters at all from before 1940? For one thing, one type of poster, window cards (14" x 22") were bought in large quantities by an individual theater and (after they added their name and play dates to the top) distributed to store windows around town. Those were given away after the film was done playing. Another way they survive is in the backs of old picture frames, for framers would often use window cards (obtainable for free) as backing boards.
But as for other posters remaining today, a huge amount come from various countries, for those did not have to be returned to the U.S.A.; at the time, the value of the posters was less than the cost of the postage to return them. There have been huge finds of pre-1940 U.S. posters in Canada, Columbia, and many other countries.
In addition there have been some great finds in the U.S., such as the Cozy Theater Collection in Los Angeles. This was a theater that maintained its own exchange of posters from the early 1930s to the 1950s for distribution to Los Angeles theaters. In 1968 the theater owner offered his entire collection of posters (containing tens of thousands of posters and lobby cards, and hundreds of thousands of stills) for sale for $25,000, and it was hard to find a buyer! At today's prices, the collection would sell for millions of dollars.
Other than the huge finds (which probably account for 90% of the pre-1938 posters known), posters also are sometimes found in one other main way. In the 1910s and 1920s (and to a lesser extent in the 1930s), builders would often look for material to put within the walls of buildings (or under the floors) to serve as insulation. Some enterprising builders hooked up with poster exchanges to take large amounts of outdated posters and put them in the walls of their new homes. These have been discovered by people having renovations done. Sometimes they are moldy and mildewed and require large amounts of restoration, but sometimes they are so tightly pressed together that they survive in relatively excellent condition.
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Back in the 1940's most theaters would show a film for 3 or 4 days (as part of a program that might include 2 features, a cartoon, a newsreel, and possibly a serial chapter), and then send it on (via bus) to the next theater. Often the theater manager would put the film on a late night bus right after his last showing and it would arrive at the next theater the following morning, in time to be displayed for that night's show. The film might go by bus through a circuit of many theaters before returning to an exchange. After the film returned to the exchange, it would go back out to other theaters, and often the posters had to be replaced, as they were torn and tattered from being put up and taken down several times.
==================================================
Editors note
Download films
==================================================
So you can understand why posters from before 1940 are extremely rare. Theater owners couldn't give their posters to collectors, no matter how hard they begged, because they were needed at the next theater. This whole system of having to deal with each studio separately might sound very inefficient, but remember that in the 1920s and 1930s many theaters were owned by the studios and so only showed that studio's product; and most of the independents would only get their films from a couple of studios, so it wasn't that complicated.
But if all the posters were returned with the films, how are there any posters at all from before 1940? For one thing, one type of poster, window cards (14" x 22") were bought in large quantities by an individual theater and (after they added their name and play dates to the top) distributed to store windows around town. Those were given away after the film was done playing. Another way they survive is in the backs of old picture frames, for framers would often use window cards (obtainable for free) as backing boards.
But as for other posters remaining today, a huge amount come from various countries, for those did not have to be returned to the U.S.A.; at the time, the value of the posters was less than the cost of the postage to return them. There have been huge finds of pre-1940 U.S. posters in Canada, Columbia, and many other countries.
In addition there have been some great finds in the U.S., such as the Cozy Theater Collection in Los Angeles. This was a theater that maintained its own exchange of posters from the early 1930s to the 1950s for distribution to Los Angeles theaters. In 1968 the theater owner offered his entire collection of posters (containing tens of thousands of posters and lobby cards, and hundreds of thousands of stills) for sale for $25,000, and it was hard to find a buyer! At today's prices, the collection would sell for millions of dollars.
Other than the huge finds (which probably account for 90% of the pre-1938 posters known), posters also are sometimes found in one other main way. In the 1910s and 1920s (and to a lesser extent in the 1930s), builders would often look for material to put within the walls of buildings (or under the floors) to serve as insulation. Some enterprising builders hooked up with poster exchanges to take large amounts of outdated posters and put them in the walls of their new homes. These have been discovered by people having renovations done. Sometimes they are moldy and mildewed and require large amounts of restoration, but sometimes they are so tightly pressed together that they survive in relatively excellent condition.
Movie download
Thursday 6 March 2008
Classic Con Man Movies
Are these the top five con man movies of all time?
There was a time when con men had to rely on their cunning and wits to get by. Now, all they need is a computer and a Nigerian e-mail address. However, we can count on Hollywood to remind us of the good old days of conning. These grifters and small-time hoods have been the focus of countless movies. No tricks, no illusions, just great viewing.
The Sting (1973)
When a con man’s partner is murdered, he seeks justice the only way he knows how -- no, not through our efficient and effective legal system; he cons the murderer. He teams up with a fellow confidence man and sets up an elaborate, complicated “long con;” one that involves a cast of dozens, rigged horse races and rogue cops. It would have probably been a lot easier to just hunt the guy down and kill him. But a movie based on that violent outcome probably wouldn’t have gathered seven Oscars like this one did.
The Grifters (1990)
If your father has any type of business he is likely to wind up adding an “& Sons” to his business to carry on the tradition. But what happens when your folks are into conning? As this Oscar-nominated classic shows the scamming apple never falls far from the fraudulent tree. John Cusack plays a small-time crook who finds himself torn between his con-woman mother and his new con girlfriend. Surrounded by scheming women and fraudsters, what could possibly go wrong?
Catch Me If You Can (2002)
With Steven Spielberg behind the camera and Tom Hanks and Leonardo DiCaprio in front of it, expectations for this con movie were high. Did you really think these guys would let us down? Even under the weight of crushing expectations, the all-star cast and crew produced a slick, perfectly paced and wildly entertaining tale of an expert counterfeiter and the FBI agent obsessed with catching him. Like any con movie worth its weight, this one features twists, turns and imaginative scams. People seemed randomly hesitant to like it when it first came out, but it’s since taken its rightful place among the best of the best.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)
Steve Martin and Michael Caine are competing con men working in a small Mediterranean village. Since they both prey on vulnerable and wealthy older women, they soon agree the picturesque town isn’t big enough for both of them and agree to a bet; the first to scam $50,000 from a beautiful young heiress gets to stay. Frank Oz, who is known most for his work on the Muppets, directed this outrageously hilarious movie. It brims with unforgettable quotable lines.
Matchstick Men (2003)
As if organizing a big swindle and suffering from OCD isn’t enough, the con man at the center of this classic con movie also has to deal with the sudden arrival of his long-lost daughter. To make things even more complicated, the poor guy’s kid takes a real liking to his chosen profession. Ridley Scott slows things down a bit from his usual fare (Alien, Gladiator) and produces a slow, methodical and mesmerizing tale of family, loyalty and honour. Not words you would usually expect to be associated with a movie about con men, but this is certainly not your average con-man movie.
There was a time when con men had to rely on their cunning and wits to get by. Now, all they need is a computer and a Nigerian e-mail address. However, we can count on Hollywood to remind us of the good old days of conning. These grifters and small-time hoods have been the focus of countless movies. No tricks, no illusions, just great viewing.
The Sting (1973)
When a con man’s partner is murdered, he seeks justice the only way he knows how -- no, not through our efficient and effective legal system; he cons the murderer. He teams up with a fellow confidence man and sets up an elaborate, complicated “long con;” one that involves a cast of dozens, rigged horse races and rogue cops. It would have probably been a lot easier to just hunt the guy down and kill him. But a movie based on that violent outcome probably wouldn’t have gathered seven Oscars like this one did.
The Grifters (1990)
If your father has any type of business he is likely to wind up adding an “& Sons” to his business to carry on the tradition. But what happens when your folks are into conning? As this Oscar-nominated classic shows the scamming apple never falls far from the fraudulent tree. John Cusack plays a small-time crook who finds himself torn between his con-woman mother and his new con girlfriend. Surrounded by scheming women and fraudsters, what could possibly go wrong?
Catch Me If You Can (2002)
With Steven Spielberg behind the camera and Tom Hanks and Leonardo DiCaprio in front of it, expectations for this con movie were high. Did you really think these guys would let us down? Even under the weight of crushing expectations, the all-star cast and crew produced a slick, perfectly paced and wildly entertaining tale of an expert counterfeiter and the FBI agent obsessed with catching him. Like any con movie worth its weight, this one features twists, turns and imaginative scams. People seemed randomly hesitant to like it when it first came out, but it’s since taken its rightful place among the best of the best.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (1988)
Steve Martin and Michael Caine are competing con men working in a small Mediterranean village. Since they both prey on vulnerable and wealthy older women, they soon agree the picturesque town isn’t big enough for both of them and agree to a bet; the first to scam $50,000 from a beautiful young heiress gets to stay. Frank Oz, who is known most for his work on the Muppets, directed this outrageously hilarious movie. It brims with unforgettable quotable lines.
Matchstick Men (2003)
As if organizing a big swindle and suffering from OCD isn’t enough, the con man at the center of this classic con movie also has to deal with the sudden arrival of his long-lost daughter. To make things even more complicated, the poor guy’s kid takes a real liking to his chosen profession. Ridley Scott slows things down a bit from his usual fare (Alien, Gladiator) and produces a slow, methodical and mesmerizing tale of family, loyalty and honour. Not words you would usually expect to be associated with a movie about con men, but this is certainly not your average con-man movie.
Wednesday 5 March 2008
Classic Movies
I like the word "classic" because the term conjures up a good movie. In general, I use it to mean "embodying high qualities" with a touch of "famous in the sense of long-established." A classic also usually either serves as a model or adheres to certain established standards. Classic movies aren't so much defined by a specific time frame (although the Hollywood studio system that existed from the 1910s into the 1960s and produced the majority of the films I consider classics certainly lends a temporal prejudice to my definition).
Rather, classic movies embody a method of storytelling that leaves something to the audience's imagination. When, in a classic movie, the leading man and leading lady kiss and the screen fades to black, the older members of the audience know what that means. The younger members of the audience don't know what that means, but their ignorance doesn't hurt their enjoyment of the film.
As a result, the whole family can watch the same movie together and get different things from it depending on their stage of life and the experiences they bring to the theatre with them. By leaving graphic depictions or descriptions of sex and violence and moral corruption to the audience's imagination through suggestion and innuendo, classic movies make these themes more powerful in the minds of those old enough to understand, yet without destroying the innocence of those on whom these subtleties are lost.
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Rather, classic movies embody a method of storytelling that leaves something to the audience's imagination. When, in a classic movie, the leading man and leading lady kiss and the screen fades to black, the older members of the audience know what that means. The younger members of the audience don't know what that means, but their ignorance doesn't hurt their enjoyment of the film.
As a result, the whole family can watch the same movie together and get different things from it depending on their stage of life and the experiences they bring to the theatre with them. By leaving graphic depictions or descriptions of sex and violence and moral corruption to the audience's imagination through suggestion and innuendo, classic movies make these themes more powerful in the minds of those old enough to understand, yet without destroying the innocence of those on whom these subtleties are lost.
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