Must-see: Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story
A quick post today to point you in the direction of the latest Michael Moore film, Capitalism: A Love Story, which opens in cinemas around Edinburgh today.
Following on from his documentaries Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 911, Moore returns with a scathing commentary on capitalism and its effect on our world.
Looking at how the US government is funded, and virtually owned, by international banks, he also highlights the sickening way we've been indoctrinated to believe that taking out loans on our homes with huge interest rates is a good thing, the results on homeowners around America shown in stark detail.
Whether you're convinced by everything he says or not, at least Moore incites debate, something many films these days simply can't be bothered to do. Well worth seeing on the big screen.
In recent years we've been deluged with horror films from the East, Japan producing it's fair share of shockers which then end up being remade and sanitised by American film makers looking to cash in on their success.
One film which has somehow avoided the craze is 1977's House (Masters of Cinema) from director Nobuhiko Obayashi which was possibly given up on by Hollywood executives when somebody tried to explain the plot to them.
This psychedelic frenzy of a film comes across as a mashup between Scooby Doo and Hammer Horror, a story of young schoolgirls going to the countryside and staying at an old house, only to find their accommodation brings their nightmares to life and leads to a series of deaths that are both gory and inspired.
Director Obayashi is keen on visual tricks, one recurring image, that of a blue sky behind our heroines, constantly turning out to be a painting on a wall or billboard. Along with garish colours and wild camera angles, mere description can't possibly do justice to the spectacle on offer here.
With a soundtrack from Godiego, the band behind that other 70s oddity Monkey!, this is a crazed and wonderful little film that might not make much sense but does demand repeated viewing, either under the influence of alcohol or stone cold sober.
Interviews with the film's creators, a trailer and booklet complete the set.
Taking a breather from the madness, the BFI open the vaults to bring us two discs worth of films from the Central Office of Information (COI), the organisation set-up after the Second World War to promote the culture and concerns of a nation reeling from the dismantling of the British Empire by the Atlee government.
After the war there was a worry among the populace regarding the state of the nation's youth, the results of rationing and economic hardship putting a strain on Britain's youth culture. The films on these discs represent the cream of the crop from hundreds made in the 1940s and beyond.
With the set subtitled Police and Thieves, disc one concerns itself with the reform of children caught up in crime, their reform of paramount importance to both parents and worried friends and neighbours.
Starting with 1946's Children on Trial, an odd little story about teenage boys sent to an institution for a few years only to be returned to their parents as well regarded young men, we're taken on a tour of the various methods employed in the reformation of naughty boys and girls around the country.
Not to be left out, Edinburgh is showcased in 1944's Children of the City while films such as Probation Officer, Youth Club and A Chance for Brian show that the methods used to tame the kiddoes of the past weren't as tough as we might have expected from productions such as Alan Clarke's Scum.
Disc two moves onto a series of police recruitment films from through the years, again mixing scripted stories and documentary to depict a profession which always seems to be changing. Most films go to great lengths to portray the bobby as a friend of everyone in the neighbourhood, even going so far as to help one old dear with her tax return forms.
While occasionally quaint, these films are also important glimpses into our cultural heritage and it would be interesting to see how a modern day director would approach such material when the life of the British copper has changed so much over the decades.
I've an apology to make. Most weeks I try to recommend a film at the cinema or on DVD which has some redeeming features, a hopefully quality choice that you might otherwise miss and that deserves to have your hard earned cash spent on it.
Sorry, but that all changes today as I introduce you to a film dubbed “the best worst movie of all time”, one so bad it inspires audiences to laugh at its dialogue, throw plastic spoons at the cinema screen and stage mock walk outs from the auditorium.
Released in 2003 by writer/director/producer and actor Tommy Wiseau, The Room cost $6 million to make and centres on Johnny (Wiseau) whose girlfriend is cheating on him with best friend, Mark.
After that the details get a little shaky. Subplots appear and disappear for no reason (most notably the revelation from one character that she's suffering from cancer, only for the subject never to be mentioned again); dodgy green screen work depicts a very fake San Francisco; and one actor falls over playing football and vanishes for the rest of the movie.
Terrible as it might sound, the film was supposed to be a serious drama, Wiseau claiming in retrospect that it's a black comedy. What changed his mind was the appearance of the film at late night screenings around America, fans latching onto the sheer awfulness of it all and embracing it.
Celebrity fans such as actor Jonah Hill, Shaun of the Dead director Edgar Wright and actress Kristin Bell are obsessive about The Room, the latter even throwing parties at her house to screen it to friends.
Of course, watching and enjoying bad films is nothing new. Back in the 1950s, director Ed Wood Jr was renowned for producing low quality pictures such as the infamous Plan 9 from Outer Space, while The Rocky Horror Picture Show is notorious for its audience participation. Personally, I feel like throwing real cutlery at the screen during any Will Ferrell film, but maybe that's just me.
Sadly, The Room isn't available on DVD in the UK, but all is not lost. Seven years after its release, the Cameo cinema is screening the film for one night only on Saturday 20 February, a rare chance for Edinburgh cinema-goers to see what all the fuss is about. Just remember your plastic spoons...
I noted in today's Evening News that this week saw the publication 2010 Oscar nominations, a list dominated by James Cameron's Avatar and Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker.
There are some obvious choices and a few surprises, though in the main I just hope Avatar doesn't completely sweep the board - here's that list in full:
Actor in a Leading Role
Jeff Bridges in “Crazy Heart”
George Clooney in “Up in the Air”
Colin Firth in “A Single Man”
Morgan Freeman in “Invictus”
Jeremy Renner in “The Hurt Locker”
Actor in a Supporting Role
Matt Damon in “Invictus”
Woody Harrelson in “The Messenger”
Christopher Plummer in “The Last Station”
Stanley Tucci in “The Lovely Bones”
Christoph Waltz in “Inglourious Basterds”
Actress in a Leading Role
Sandra Bullock in “The Blind Side”
Helen Mirren in “The Last Station”
Carey Mulligan in “An Education”
Gabourey Sidibe in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
Meryl Streep in “Julie & Julia”
Actress in a Supporting Role
Penélope Cruz in “Nine”
Vera Farmiga in “Up in the Air”
Maggie Gyllenhaal in “Crazy Heart”
Anna Kendrick in “Up in the Air”
Mo’Nique in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”
Animated Feature Film
“Coraline” Henry Selick
“Fantastic Mr. Fox” Wes Anderson
“The Princess and the Frog” John Musker and Ron Clements
“The Secret of Kells” Tomm Moore
“Up” Pete Docter
Art Direction
"Avatar” Art Direction: Rick Carter and Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Kim Sinclair
"The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” Art Direction: Dave Warren and Anastasia Masaro; Set Decoration: Caroline Smith
“Nine” Art Direction: John Myhre; Set Decoration: Gordon Sim
“Sherlock Holmes” Art Direction: Sarah Greenwood; Set Decoration: Katie Spencer
“The Young Victoria” Art Direction: Patrice Vermette; Set Decoration: Maggie Gray
Cinematography
“Avatar” Mauro Fiore
“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” Bruno Delbonnel
“The Hurt Locker” Barry Ackroyd
“Inglourious Basterds” Robert Richardson
“The White Ribbon” Christian Berger
Costume Design
“Bright Star” Janet Patterson
“Coco before Chanel” Catherine Leterrier
“The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” Monique Prudhomme
“Nine” Colleen Atwood
“The Young Victoria” Sandy Powell
Directing
“Avatar” James Cameron
“The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow
“Inglourious Basterds” Quentin Tarantino
“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels
“Up in the Air” Jason Reitman
Documentary (Feature)
“Burma VJ” Anders Østergaard and Lise Lense-Møller
“The Cove” Nominees to be determined
“Food, Inc.” Robert Kenner and Elise Pearlstein
“The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers” Judith Ehrlich and Rick Goldsmith
“Which Way Home” Rebecca Cammisa
Documentary (Short Subject)
“China’s Unnatural Disaster: The Tears of Sichuan Province” Jon Alpert and Matthew O’Neill
“The Last Campaign of Governor Booth Gardner” Daniel Junge and Henry Ansbacher
“The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant” Steven Bognar and Julia Reichert
“Music by Prudence” Roger Ross Williams and Elinor Burkett
“Rabbit à la Berlin” Bartek Konopka and Anna Wydra
Film Editing
“Avatar” Stephen Rivkin, John Refoua and James Cameron
“District 9” Julian Clarke
“The Hurt Locker” Bob Murawski and Chris Innis
“Inglourious Basterds” Sally Menke
“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Joe Klotz
Foreign Language Film
“Ajami” Israel
“The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos)” Argentina
“The Milk of Sorrow (La Teta Asustada)” Peru
“A Prophet (Un Prophète)” France
“The White Ribbon (Das Weisse Band)” Germany
Makeup
“Il Divo” Aldo Signoretti and Vittorio Sodano
“Star Trek” Barney Burman, Mindy Hall and Joel Harlow
“The Young Victoria” Jon Henry Gordon and Jenny Shircore
Music (Original Score)
“Avatar” James Horner
“Fantastic Mr. Fox” Alexandre Desplat
“The Hurt Locker” Marco Beltrami and Buck Sanders
“Sherlock Holmes” Hans Zimmer
“Up” Michael Giacchino
Music (Original Song)
“Almost There” from “The Princess and the Frog” Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
“Down in New Orleans” from “The Princess and the Frog” Music and Lyric by Randy Newman
“Loin de Paname” from “Paris 36” Music by Reinhardt Wagner Lyric by Frank Thomas
“Take It All” from “Nine” Music and Lyric by Maury Yeston
“The Weary Kind (Theme from Crazy Heart)” from “Crazy Heart” Music and Lyric by Ryan Bingham and T Bone Burnett
Best Picture
“Avatar” James Cameron and Jon Landau, Producers
“The Blind Side” Gil Netter, Andrew A. Kosove and Broderick Johnson, Producers
“District 9” Peter Jackson and Carolynne Cunningham, Producers
“An Education” Finola Dwyer and Amanda Posey, Producers
“The Hurt Locker” Kathryn Bigelow, Mark Boal, Nicolas Chartier and Greg Shapiro, Producers
“Inglourious Basterds” Lawrence Bender, Producer
“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Lee Daniels, Sarah Siegel-Magness and Gary Magness, Producers
“A Serious Man” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, Producers
“Up” Jonas Rivera, Producer
“Up in the Air” Daniel Dubiecki, Ivan Reitman and Jason Reitman, Producers
Short Film (Animated)
“French Roast” Fabrice O. Joubert
“Granny O’Grimm’s Sleeping Beauty” Nicky Phelan and Darragh O’Connell
“The Lady and the Reaper (La Dama y la Muerte)” Javier Recio Gracia
“Logorama” Nicolas Schmerkin
“A Matter of Loaf and Death” Nick Park
Short Film (Live Action)
“The Door” Juanita Wilson and James Flynn
“Instead of Abracadabra” Patrik Eklund and Mathias Fjellström
“Kavi” Gregg Helvey
“Miracle Fish” Luke Doolan and Drew Bailey
“The New Tenants” Joachim Back and Tivi Magnusson
Sound Editing
“Avatar” Christopher Boyes and Gwendolyn Yates Whittle
“The Hurt Locker” Paul N.J. Ottosson
“Inglourious Basterds” Wylie Stateman
“Star Trek” Mark Stoeckinger and Alan Rankin
“Up” Michael Silvers and Tom Myers
Sound Mixing
“Avatar” Christopher Boyes, Gary Summers, Andy Nelson and Tony Johnson
“The Hurt Locker” Paul N.J. Ottosson and Ray Beckett
“Inglourious Basterds” Michael Minkler, Tony Lamberti and Mark Ulano
“Star Trek” Anna Behlmer, Andy Nelson and Peter J. Devlin
“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers and Geoffrey Patterson
Visual Effects
“Avatar” Joe Letteri, Stephen Rosenbaum, Richard Baneham and Andrew R. Jones
“District 9” Dan Kaufman, Peter Muyzers, Robert Habros and Matt Aitken
“Star Trek” Roger Guyett, Russell Earl, Paul Kavanagh and Burt Dalton
Writing (Adapted Screenplay)
“District 9” Written by Neill Blomkamp and Terri Tatchell
“An Education” Screenplay by Nick Hornby
“In the Loop” Screenplay by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci, Tony Roche
“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” Screenplay by Geoffrey Fletcher
“Up in the Air” Screenplay by Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner
Writing (Original Screenplay)
“The Hurt Locker” Written by Mark Boal
“Inglourious Basterds” Written by Quentin Tarantino
“The Messenger” Written by Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman
“A Serious Man” Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
“Up” Screenplay by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy
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