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If you live in London, Los Angles or New York you probably get used to seeing your home city up in front of you when you sit down in the dark, but if you live in Canberra, Australia, this doesn't happen too often. That is until Galore, an impressive teenage drama set here in the nation's capital. I still haven't quite got over seeing our local branch of Crust Pizza up on the big screen; our weekly pizza night feels slightly more Hollywood now.
Galore is ambitious, confident and bursts from the screen with the intensity of it's subject matter. Played out in the preceding days before the tragic bush fires that swept through Canberra in 2003, writer director Rhys Graham beautifully captures the overpowering nature of adolescent emotions, their all-consuming nature and dangerous potential to burn out of control. The sparks in the centre of this fire are Canberran teenagers Billie (Ashleigh Cummings) and Laura (Lily Sullivan), two inseparable best friends, bonded together by the shared experience of teenage dreams. However, these dreams have the potential to turn into nightmares, as unbeknown to Laura, Billie also shares Laura's boyfriend Danny (Toby Wallace).
When you are a teenager everything is intense, immediate and inviting, with little thought given to potential consequences; you live in the now and deal with the future when or if it comes. These feelings seem to epitomize Billie who is entirely centered on the now while also craving acceptance and validation from her friends and family. She is trapped in a doomed relationship triangle between Laura and the slightly unconvincing Danny, while also having to compete for her mother's attention, a social worker who occasionally brings her work home, this time in the form of Isaac (Aliki Matangi). Billie acts as any teenager would by rebelling, taking rash decisions and leaving others to pick up the pieces.
This level of intensity is difficult to sustain and empathise with, but you genuinely feel for the struggles faced by Billie. Cummings brings an impressive level of reality and realism, which invites the audience to not condone her actions, but simply to validate her emotions and the hold they have over her. Billie's central relationship with Laura is affecting and feels grounded in truth with Sullivan blending just the right amount of naivety and curiousness to Laura. The wider cast members do not quite reach these standards with Wallace in particular seeming too young and inexperienced for both the role and also to be the subject of such affection.
What makes Galore glorious though is Stefan Dusico's at times really quite breathtaking cinematography. Dusico's extensive use of natural light accentuates the drama, and strips further away at a script that already feels raw and refined. Dusico captures the natural beauty of Canberra through his depiction of the impeding firewall, portrayed as plumes of smoke amongst the surrounding hills, which edges closer to the action as the narrative, and indeed Billie, slowly unravels. The relentless march of the smoke seems to portray the inevitability of the consequences of Billie's actions and serves as a potent and stark reminder of what is to come.
From a young and relatively inexperienced cast and crew, Galore is an impressive and ambitious Australian teen drama, which captures the intensity of those formative teenage years in an effective and engaging manner. Galore also showcases that Canberra is more than just a temporary home for politicians, it is a rich, vibrant community, in which teenagers experience the same trials and tribulations as in any other city in the world.
★★★★
Review by Will Malone
Galore is ambitious, confident and bursts from the screen with the intensity of it's subject matter. Played out in the preceding days before the tragic bush fires that swept through Canberra in 2003, writer director Rhys Graham beautifully captures the overpowering nature of adolescent emotions, their all-consuming nature and dangerous potential to burn out of control. The sparks in the centre of this fire are Canberran teenagers Billie (Ashleigh Cummings) and Laura (Lily Sullivan), two inseparable best friends, bonded together by the shared experience of teenage dreams. However, these dreams have the potential to turn into nightmares, as unbeknown to Laura, Billie also shares Laura's boyfriend Danny (Toby Wallace).
When you are a teenager everything is intense, immediate and inviting, with little thought given to potential consequences; you live in the now and deal with the future when or if it comes. These feelings seem to epitomize Billie who is entirely centered on the now while also craving acceptance and validation from her friends and family. She is trapped in a doomed relationship triangle between Laura and the slightly unconvincing Danny, while also having to compete for her mother's attention, a social worker who occasionally brings her work home, this time in the form of Isaac (Aliki Matangi). Billie acts as any teenager would by rebelling, taking rash decisions and leaving others to pick up the pieces.
This level of intensity is difficult to sustain and empathise with, but you genuinely feel for the struggles faced by Billie. Cummings brings an impressive level of reality and realism, which invites the audience to not condone her actions, but simply to validate her emotions and the hold they have over her. Billie's central relationship with Laura is affecting and feels grounded in truth with Sullivan blending just the right amount of naivety and curiousness to Laura. The wider cast members do not quite reach these standards with Wallace in particular seeming too young and inexperienced for both the role and also to be the subject of such affection.
What makes Galore glorious though is Stefan Dusico's at times really quite breathtaking cinematography. Dusico's extensive use of natural light accentuates the drama, and strips further away at a script that already feels raw and refined. Dusico captures the natural beauty of Canberra through his depiction of the impeding firewall, portrayed as plumes of smoke amongst the surrounding hills, which edges closer to the action as the narrative, and indeed Billie, slowly unravels. The relentless march of the smoke seems to portray the inevitability of the consequences of Billie's actions and serves as a potent and stark reminder of what is to come.
From a young and relatively inexperienced cast and crew, Galore is an impressive and ambitious Australian teen drama, which captures the intensity of those formative teenage years in an effective and engaging manner. Galore also showcases that Canberra is more than just a temporary home for politicians, it is a rich, vibrant community, in which teenagers experience the same trials and tribulations as in any other city in the world.
★★★★
Review by Will Malone
OK, so lets begin with the plot, as much as it is. It is the year 2079 and criminals from all nationalities (however still under the watchful eye of the USA) are now being locked up in space on board vessels such as Maximum Security 1 (M.S.1). The most serious criminals are kept in stasis for the length of their sentence. For some inexplicable reason the US Secret Service lets the President's daughter Emilie Warnock (Maggie Grace) visit M.S.1 as part of a research project into the potential adverse affects of stasis. During her visit the prisoners escape and she gets Taken (see what I did there
..) hostage. In swoops Guy Pearce, a CIA agent who has been wrongly accused of espionage and given the opportunity to break into M.S.1, free Ms Warnock and clear his name all in one fowl swoop. Game on.
Lets not beat around the bush here, Lockout is great fun. It is clearly not trying to take itself too seriously and right from the outset is filled with nods towards Tony Scott's Last Boy Scout, Die Hard and even later on in the film The West Wing and Star Wars. Whilst this may sound like a strange combination, in fact Besson (who was credited with the original "idea") dishes up one hell of a ride with a script full of clinical one liners, some impressive fight scenes and just huge amounts of fun.
Guy Pearce channels his inner Bruce Willis to good effect and appears to be having a great time along the way. The opening scene which is cribbed almost directly from The Last Boy Scout sets the scene for what is to come. Pearce is one brutal, unflinching and sarcastic SOB, but importantly he is also convincing. There was danger here of Pearce coming across as a cheap imitation of John McClane or Joe Hallenback, however Pearce genuinely stakes his own claim as a credible fast talking, wise cracking action hero. Some of Pearce's best moments are in that opening scene, but there are also some wickedly sharp exchanges with Maggie Grace who plays the President's daughter and the two work off each other well. Grace who appears to be making a career out of getting taken hostage is a little two dimensional at the start but quickly finds her feet once the bullets start flying.
The sleepy prisoners who all appear to be from Glasgow are led by a convincing Vincent Reegan who plays the Hans Gruber role to good effect without getting too hung up on missing detonators. He is ably supported (and hindered) by a slightly unhinged Joseph Gilgun and it is worth warning any regular viewers of Emmerdale that they are in for a bit of a surprise once the figure out who he is. A slight departure from Dingle household to say the least.
The direction is a little dodgy at the start with a poorly executed first act and a motorbike chase seen which looks something akin to a cheap batman video game and perhaps suggests the level of budget they were working on. I would however beg some patience as once the action moves to space and the close confines of M.S.1 things improve dramatically.
Lockout is perfect Friday night beer and pizza fodder. It's not trying to be anything its not, and it does what it does really quite well. If you ignore the gaping plot holes and the dodgy script but keep a tally for all the cameos you spot and drink a shot for every time there is a nod towards another film you'll be in for a great evening. In fact that sounds like a fun night; can I come round?
Lets not beat around the bush here, Lockout is great fun. It is clearly not trying to take itself too seriously and right from the outset is filled with nods towards Tony Scott's Last Boy Scout, Die Hard and even later on in the film The West Wing and Star Wars. Whilst this may sound like a strange combination, in fact Besson (who was credited with the original "idea") dishes up one hell of a ride with a script full of clinical one liners, some impressive fight scenes and just huge amounts of fun.
Guy Pearce channels his inner Bruce Willis to good effect and appears to be having a great time along the way. The opening scene which is cribbed almost directly from The Last Boy Scout sets the scene for what is to come. Pearce is one brutal, unflinching and sarcastic SOB, but importantly he is also convincing. There was danger here of Pearce coming across as a cheap imitation of John McClane or Joe Hallenback, however Pearce genuinely stakes his own claim as a credible fast talking, wise cracking action hero. Some of Pearce's best moments are in that opening scene, but there are also some wickedly sharp exchanges with Maggie Grace who plays the President's daughter and the two work off each other well. Grace who appears to be making a career out of getting taken hostage is a little two dimensional at the start but quickly finds her feet once the bullets start flying.
The sleepy prisoners who all appear to be from Glasgow are led by a convincing Vincent Reegan who plays the Hans Gruber role to good effect without getting too hung up on missing detonators. He is ably supported (and hindered) by a slightly unhinged Joseph Gilgun and it is worth warning any regular viewers of Emmerdale that they are in for a bit of a surprise once the figure out who he is. A slight departure from Dingle household to say the least.
The direction is a little dodgy at the start with a poorly executed first act and a motorbike chase seen which looks something akin to a cheap batman video game and perhaps suggests the level of budget they were working on. I would however beg some patience as once the action moves to space and the close confines of M.S.1 things improve dramatically.
Lockout is perfect Friday night beer and pizza fodder. It's not trying to be anything its not, and it does what it does really quite well. If you ignore the gaping plot holes and the dodgy script but keep a tally for all the cameos you spot and drink a shot for every time there is a nod towards another film you'll be in for a great evening. In fact that sounds like a fun night; can I come round?
They say that every one has a book in them. If that is true then I reckon every movie star has at least one good film in them and Punch-Drunk Love is Adam Sandler's one good film. I remember listening to UK film critic Mark Kermode before he planned to watch Sandler's horrendously double-acted Jack and Jill, he stated that as low as Sandler has sunk of late he still goes into each of his new releases remembering that Sandler was in Punch-Drunk Love. This gives him hope, for a short time anyway.
Punch-Drunk Love tells that story of Barry Egan (Sandler) a slightly beleaguered small businessman who has been so mollycoddled and henpecked by his seven sisters that he seems to have developed borderline psychiatric issues as well as an occasional fearsome rage. Egan clearly craves peace, happiness and above all else stability to the chaos that he feels he lives in. Early one morning whilst opening his toilet plunger business help arrives from two quarters; firstly a mysterious harmonium is delivered outside his premises followed swiftly by an inquisitive woman named Lena Leonard (Emily Watson) who appears keen to make his acquaintance . Through both Egan learns to channel his inner rage towards a more productive outcome.
I have not seen any of Paul Thomas Anderson's previous work but anyone that can conjure up this kind of performance out of Adam Sadler deserves some critical attention. Sandler is simply outstanding in this career high role. Through him you feel Egan's unease, his confusion, his sadness and indeed his feelings of love. Sometimes these feelings come through in such deep measures that it felt quite overpowering; I simply cannot remember being quite so invested in an on-screen character before. Sandler's performance was so unexpected that it reminded me of Jim Carrey's in Eternal Sunshine of Spotless Mind.
Emily Watson as Lena is equally impressive as she carefully, respectfully and at times apprehensively tip toes her way into Egan's life. She is clearly carrying some baggage of her own as well which is never really explored, but you get the strong feeling she understands what's going on in Egan's head. The chemistry between them is evident and they seem to flow off each other well. In one particular scene where Lena channels Egan's aggressive side into a more intimate setting, you can clearly see the influence this film had on Sarah Polly's recent drama Take This Waltz. In fact these two films would work well as a double bill.
There are some entertaining cameos thrown in for good measure, with the lead credit given to Philip Seymour Hoffman. Here he stars as as the owner of a mattress store which doubles as a sex phone line centre called by Egan during a moment of introspection, which leads to unexpected consequences. Out of Egan's seven sisters we only really spend time with Elisabeth, played by 24's Mary Lynn Rajskub, who is convincing but perhaps a little too CTU, however my favourite cameo has to go to Robert Smigel as Walter the Dentist. A conversation between Egan and Walter had me laughing out loud and reaching for the rewind button to watch it again.
Anderson's direction is short, snappy and incredibly visually attractive. Colour is every where and each frame is beautifully shot. Anderson uses the screen to demonstrate Egan's confusion and in one particularly telling scene, he shows Egan running through the maze of corridors trying to find Lena's apartment. This is a powerful and effective demonstration of Egan's state of mind. I suspect that on return viewings (which are inevitable) I will discover more hidden gems which passed me by on this first viewing.
Whilst I was expecting this film to be good, I was still surprised at just how good it was. Sandler is a revelation, I wonder if he knows just how good he and this film was? I really hope he does.
Review by Will Malone
Punch-Drunk Love tells that story of Barry Egan (Sandler) a slightly beleaguered small businessman who has been so mollycoddled and henpecked by his seven sisters that he seems to have developed borderline psychiatric issues as well as an occasional fearsome rage. Egan clearly craves peace, happiness and above all else stability to the chaos that he feels he lives in. Early one morning whilst opening his toilet plunger business help arrives from two quarters; firstly a mysterious harmonium is delivered outside his premises followed swiftly by an inquisitive woman named Lena Leonard (Emily Watson) who appears keen to make his acquaintance . Through both Egan learns to channel his inner rage towards a more productive outcome.
I have not seen any of Paul Thomas Anderson's previous work but anyone that can conjure up this kind of performance out of Adam Sadler deserves some critical attention. Sandler is simply outstanding in this career high role. Through him you feel Egan's unease, his confusion, his sadness and indeed his feelings of love. Sometimes these feelings come through in such deep measures that it felt quite overpowering; I simply cannot remember being quite so invested in an on-screen character before. Sandler's performance was so unexpected that it reminded me of Jim Carrey's in Eternal Sunshine of Spotless Mind.
Emily Watson as Lena is equally impressive as she carefully, respectfully and at times apprehensively tip toes her way into Egan's life. She is clearly carrying some baggage of her own as well which is never really explored, but you get the strong feeling she understands what's going on in Egan's head. The chemistry between them is evident and they seem to flow off each other well. In one particular scene where Lena channels Egan's aggressive side into a more intimate setting, you can clearly see the influence this film had on Sarah Polly's recent drama Take This Waltz. In fact these two films would work well as a double bill.
There are some entertaining cameos thrown in for good measure, with the lead credit given to Philip Seymour Hoffman. Here he stars as as the owner of a mattress store which doubles as a sex phone line centre called by Egan during a moment of introspection, which leads to unexpected consequences. Out of Egan's seven sisters we only really spend time with Elisabeth, played by 24's Mary Lynn Rajskub, who is convincing but perhaps a little too CTU, however my favourite cameo has to go to Robert Smigel as Walter the Dentist. A conversation between Egan and Walter had me laughing out loud and reaching for the rewind button to watch it again.
Anderson's direction is short, snappy and incredibly visually attractive. Colour is every where and each frame is beautifully shot. Anderson uses the screen to demonstrate Egan's confusion and in one particularly telling scene, he shows Egan running through the maze of corridors trying to find Lena's apartment. This is a powerful and effective demonstration of Egan's state of mind. I suspect that on return viewings (which are inevitable) I will discover more hidden gems which passed me by on this first viewing.
Whilst I was expecting this film to be good, I was still surprised at just how good it was. Sandler is a revelation, I wonder if he knows just how good he and this film was? I really hope he does.
Review by Will Malone