wheatdog

It has to be said that Quentin Tarantino quite simply rocks and is the epitome of cool in modern-day film-making. Nobody stamps their mark on a film in the manner he does and with the possible exception of the peerless 'Pulp Fiction' this is his finest work to date. Vol.2 is utterly absorbing. The loose ends and questions from Vol.1 are seamlessly threaded into the next passage of Beatrix's vengeful odyssey and flow perfectly through to a wonderfully crafted and satisfying denouement. Effortlessly stylish and original, the dialogue and characters come together with the plot to create what can only be described as a masterpiece of modern movie-making. Utterly, utterly brilliant; there is simply nothing more to say.

'Josephine' in her little black dress, crouched in a hotel kitchen, HUGE smoking hand-cannon swaying in her delicate little paws, not entirely sure what she's doing......equals my all-time favourite movie poster and an enduring image of a wonderfully crafted, absorbing study of love, penance and obligation. Throw in a funky, pulsing score and you have a modern classic. The film is generally slow-paced save for a couple of genuinely exciting and achingly cool set-pieces and is more an examination of Marie's transformation and rehabilitation than anything else. If you want consistent, high-octane thrills then look elsewhere because this beautiful film packs an emotional rather than physical punch. Anne Parillaud as 'Marie' (Nikita/Josephine) in the lead role is breathtaking and her failure to feature since in any picture of note baffles me. She is the centrepiece of the film: aggressive, fragile, tactile, ugly, beautiful, cold, efficient, she runs the gamut of human emotion and in doing so lingers on as one of the most complex and memorable female characters in recent movie history. Time is a central character here; much as in Gaspar Noe's 'Irreversible' it is all-powerful and destroys everything, good and bad. It's passage is portrayed regularly, symbolic of Marie's simultaneous progress and rehabilitation. The lighting here is also effective, giving the film an almost washed-out feel. Hollywood again take note, this is a REAL film about love and pain of the most excruciating kind: of having no control, identity or direction and hurting those about whom you care the most. A must-see.

'Lost In Translation' is a novel movie experience. With it's languid pace, soft focus and sparse dialogue it possesses an almost dream-like quality. Bill Murray and Scarlet Johansson hold your attention as two disparate, lonely strangers in a foreign land (Tokyo itself is effectively a central character) who seek solace in each other's company to escape their self-imposed exiles at the Park Hyatt hotel. Murray, an international movie star, is on location filming a whisky commercial whilst Johansson is accompanying her photographer husband (a quirky Giovanni Ribisi) on a business trip. The film charts their burgeoning friendship forged through a mutual apathy borne out of loneliness and frustration. They talk, drink, sing karaoke and hang out in the hotel bar. 'Lost In Translation' is a film about finding both friendship and inspiration in the most unlikely of places. The fact that the central characters find understanding in such a foreign place demonstrates this to perfection with Tokyo proving an inspired location for a movie about finding meaning. In fact you could say it's wholly ironic. A clever and subtle film which rails refreshingly against convention, making Sofia Coppola clearly one to watch as a director.