Film Index PROFILE
LYNN SHELTON Born 1966, Seattle.
Background Having worked as an actor, photographer and editor, Shelton made her feature debut in 2005 with the surreal black comedy We Go Way Back. For her follow-up film My Effortless Brilliance, which she made two years later, she completely revised her production methods – she shot on high definition video rather than 35mm, she used a crew of just five people, and she encouraged her actors to develop their characters in rehearsals and during the shoot.
What’s she up to now? This week her third film Humpday is released in the UK. Starring Mark Duplass (last seen in The Puffy Chair) and Joshua Leonard (you may remember him from a little film called The Blair Witch Project), it’s a comic examination of heterosexual friendship, in which two straight friends drunkenly agree to have sex with one another for an amateur porn film. On the inspiration for Humpday ‘I wanted to take characters that you know really well and put them in a situation outside their comfort zone. What could be more uncomfortable for two straight guys than the situation I put them in? Originally I saw Mark Duplass in the role of the free spirit Andrew, but Mark told me he was feeling domesticated in real life, so I got him to play Ben, who’s the married, suburban guy.’
On observing people ‘A lot of people have asked me about what it’s like for a women to make a film about men. I tend to think of Mike Leigh’s comment about him making films about people. Men and women equally fascinate me.’
On comedy ‘I hope that people laugh during the film because there’s a truth to how the characters are behaving.’ Interesting fact One of Shelton’s early experimental documentaries was about miscarriage. ■ Humpday, GFT, Glasgow and Cameo, Edinburgh from Fri 18 Dec. See review, page 56.
60 THE LIST 17 Dec 2009–7 Jan 2010
Films screening this fortnight are listed below with certificate, star rating, credits, brief review and venue details. Film index compiled by Paul Dale ✽✽ Indicates Hitlist entry Aliens in the Attic (PG) ●●●●● (John Schultz, UK, 2009) Ashley Tisdale, Robert Hoffman, Austin Robert Butler. 85min. Likeably frenetic sci-fi adventure about a family’s attempt to fight off knee high alien invaders. Cineworld Fountainpark, Edinburgh. Alvin and the Chipmunks (U) ●●●●● (Tim Hill, US, 2007) Jason Lee, David Cross, Cameron Richardson. 91min. Likeable pre-school comedy featuring a bunch of pint sized chipmunk pop stars and their long-suffering human guardian (Lee). Cineworld Renfrew Street, Glasgow. Alvin and the Chipmunks 2: The Squeakquel (U) (Betty Thomas, US, 2009) Voices of Justin Long, Anna Faris, Jason Lee. 88min. See Also Released, page 58. General release Fri 18 Dec. Anti-Facist Attitude (E) (Children of Bakunin Collective, Russia, 2008) 76min. Documentary about the emerging Russian anti-fascist movement, made by the activists themselves. ACE, Edinburgh. Avatar 2D (12A) ●●●●● (James Cameron, US, 2009) Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez. 166min. See review, page 56 and feature, page 55. General release. Avatar 3D (12A) ●●●●● (James Cameron, US, 2009) Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez. 166min. See above. General release. Les Ballet Russes (E) (France, 2005) Four ballets – Le Tricorne, Le Spectre de la Rose, L’Après-midi d’un Faune and Pétrouchka – interpreted by Les Étoiles, Les Premiers Danseurs, Le Corps de Ballet, L’Orchestre de l’Opéra National de Paris and under the musical direction of Vello Pähn to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Russian Ballets of Diaghilev. Live by satellite from the National Opera of Paris. Cameo, Edinburgh. The Band Wagon (PG) ●●●●● (Vincente Minnelli, US, 1953) Fred Astaire, Cyd Charisse, Jack Buchannan. 111min. One of the great Minnelli musicals. Buchannan is a highbrow producer who wants to turn Astaire’s comeback into an arthouse take on Faust. There are some fantastic Howard Dietz/Arthur Schwartz numbers and Astaire and Charisse take the opportunity to show off with an array of different dance styles. Part of Gotta Dance! season. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Bandslam (PG) ●●●●● (Todd Graff, US, 2009) Vanessa Hudgens, Gaelan Connell, Lisa Kudrow. 110min. Tweeny pop, high school adventure chronicling budding impresario Will Burton (Connell) and his rock’n’roll band’s desperate attempts to win a battle-of-the-bands competition. Grosvenor, Glasgow. The Box (12A) ●●●●● (Richard Kelly, US, 2009) Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, Frank Langella. 115min. Based on a short story by science fiction writer Richard Matheson, this features Diaz and Marsden as a young couple in dire financial straits who are offered a unique way out. Presented with a wooden box with a red button on top, they’re told if they push it, someone they don’t know will die and they will be given $1 million. Interesting up to a point, but ultimately confounding and irritating. General release. Bright Star (PG) ●●●●● (Jane Campion, France/Australia/UK, 2009) Abbie Cornish, Ben Whishaw, Paul Schneider. 118min. This fictionalised account of poet John Keats’ love affair with Fanny Brawne is a disappointingly bland effort from Jane Campion, whose beautiful imagery and deference to the work of her subject cannot hide a lack of substance and the non-existence of any jot of chemistry between the two lead actors. Dominion, Edinburgh. Carriers (15) ●●●●● (Alex Pastor/David Pastor, US, 2009) Lou Taylor Pucci, Chris Pine, Piper Perabo. 84min. Set
after a pandemic has turned most of the world’s population into dribbling piles of flesh, this low-budget horror-thriller focuses on Brian (Pine) and three other teenagers as they attempt to sit out the ravages of the pandemic. The editing is undoubtedly choppy and the pay-off weak, but the Pastors deserve credit for delivering a passable B-movie variation on an over- familiar theme. Selected release. A Christmas Carol 2D (PG) ●●●●● (Robert Zemeckis, US, 2009) Jim Carrey, Colin Firth, Gary Oldman. 95min. Computer animated version of Dickens’ classic. General release. A Christmas Carol 3D (PG) ●●●●● (Robert Zemeckis, US, 2009) Jim Carrey, Colin Firth, Gary Oldman. 95min. See above. Selected release. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (PG) ●●●●● (Andrew Adamson, UK/US, 2008) Liam Neeson, Tilda Swinton, Ben Barnes. 143min. In the second instalment of the Narnia films, the Pevensie children are summoned back to Narnia for a slick, fast-paced romp through dark woods, underground caverns and fierce battles. With a simplistic plot, and Caspian (Barnes) reduced to a pretty face, Disney may have finally brought Narnia to the big screen, but for a real journey of the imagination, stick to the books. Empire, Clydebank. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2D (U) ●●●●● (Phil Lord, US, 2009) Voices of Bill Hader, Anna Faris, James Caan. 90min. Vivid and likeable animated version of Judi and Ron Barrett’s 1978 children’s book set in the town of Chewandswallow, where the weather comes three times a day, at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Vue Ocean, Edinburgh. Cold Souls (12A) ●●●●● (Sophie Barthes, US/France, 2009) Paul Giamatti, Dina Korzun, Emily Watson. 101min. A mind-bending premise revolving around the trading of souls reveals a marvellously sardonic commentary on the vapid nature of contemporary American society in Barthes’ highly promising debut feature. The central conceit has led some to compare the film with Being John Malkovich and the comparison is a favourable one for this clever existential comedy. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Cracks (15) ●●●●● (Jordan Scott, UK/Ireland, 2009) Eva Green, Juno Temple, María Valverde. 104min. Ludicrous and feeble attempt to posit William Goldman’s Lord of the Flies in a 1930s girl’s boarding school by Jordan Scott, daughter of Ridley. When young Spanish aristocrat Fiamma (Valverde) arrives on the scene, she stirs up obsessions in unhinged teacher Miss G (Green) and her fellow pupils head (interminably) towards certain tragedy. Cineworld Renfrew Street, Glasgow. ✽✽ Departures (12A) ●●●●● (Yojiro Takita, Japan, 2008) Masahiro Motoki, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Ryoko Hiriosue. 130min. See review, page 56. Glasgow Film Theatre. The Descent: Part 2 (18) ●●●●● (Jon Harris, UK, 2009) Shauna Macdonald, Natalie Jackson Mendoza, Joshua Dallas. 93min. Sequel to Neil Marshall’s 2006 shocker. Beginning just moments after the end of the previous film, it follows a rescue mission to save the group of female cavers who disappeared in the Appalachian Mountains. Badly scripted and acted follow- on which lacks any of the clever ambiguities of the first film. General release. Did you Hear About the Morgans? (PG) ●●●●● (Marc Lawrence, US, 2009) Hugh Grant, Sarah Jessica Parker, Natalia Klima. 103min. See Also Released, page 58. General release from Fri 1 Jan. Died Young, Stayed Pretty (15) (Eileen Yaghoobian, Canada, 2008) 90min. Eileen Yaghoobian’s film about rock poster design culture focussing on punk’s DIY aesthetics. Glasgow Film Theatre. Dirty Dancing (15) ●●●●● (Emile Ardolino, US, 1987) Jennifer Grey, Patrick Swayze, Jerry Orbach. 100min. The plot – in the summer of 1963 bad boy Johnny (Swayze) meets good girl Baby (Grey) and teaches her hip grinding, eventually winning
the respect of her parents. Sure it’s full of stereotyping, bad dialogue and a pre-teen sugar coated prurience, but 20 years on Dirty Dancing still has the ability to send a generation of women all gooey. Part of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay. Filmhouse, Edinburgh.
Jacobs, Australia/South Africa, 2009) ✽✽ Disgrace (15) ●●●●● (Steve John Malkovich, Jessica Haines, Eriq Ebouaney. 118min. Adapted from JM Coetzee’s acclaimed novel, this presents a suitably stark vision of post-apartheid South Africa. Commendably, the filmmakers haven’t attempted to turn the source material into a liberal, feel-good parable, and Malkovich’s middle-aged professor is a compelling blend of intellectual arrogance, predatory instinct and physical vulnerability. Glasgow Film Theatre. Disney’s a Christmas Carol in IMAX3d (PG) ●●●●● (Robert Zemeckis, US, 2009) Jim Carrey, Colin Firth, Gary Oldman. 95min. Computer animated version of Dickens’ classic with visuals maxed out in IMAX and 3D. IMAX Theatre, Glasgow. An Education (12A) ●●●●● (Lone Scherfig, UK, 2009) Peter Sarsgaard, Emma Thompson, Alfred Molina. 99min. Sarsgaard is on top form as seductive cad David, the older man responsible for educating bright but confused schoolgirl Jenny (Mulligan) in matters of love and life in swinging sixties London. With only a few tired stereotypes to detract from a superbly managed depiction of the central relationship, director Scherfig here combines romantic drama and the coming- of-age tale to wholly enjoyable effect. Glasgow Film Theatre; Odeon, Edinburgh. Fame (PG) ●●●●● (Kevin Tancharoen, US, 2009) Kay Panabaker, Naturi Naughton, Kelsey Grammer. 107min. Pointless remake and updating of Alan Parker’s 1982 original film (and subsequent TV series) for the High School Musical crowd. Empire, Clydebank. Fantasia 2000 (U) ●●●●● (Various, US, 2000) Voices of Steve Martin, Bette Midler, Quincy Jones. 75min. When Walt Disney first came up with the idea of turning classical music pops into an animated pot pourri, he envisioned that Fantasia would continue to be renewed by additional material. Sixty years on, his dream has at last came to fruition with this new collection of musical highlights. The star of the show is the one segment retained from the original, the Dukas ‘Sorcerer’s Apprentice’ set-piece with Mickey Mouse in a pointy wizard’s hat and lots of buckets of water. Filmhouse, Edinburgh. Fantastic Mr Fox (PG) ●●●●● (Wes Anderson, USA, 2009) Voices of George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Adrien Brody. 88min. Anderson’s inspired choice of stop- motion animation pays off in this beautiful and idiosyncratic adaptation of the well- loved children’s tale. While kids may enjoy it, Anderson’s typically arch humour is aimed more at their parents, who will also be impressed by the star-studded voice cast – Bill Murray as a badger lawyer anyone? Selected release. Farewells (15) (Wojciech Has, Poland, 1958) Maria Wachowiak, Tadeusz Janczar, Gustaw Holoubek. 97min. Has’ second cinematic work chronicles the mismatched love affair between rebellious student Pawel (Janczar) and cynical dancer Lidka (Wachowiak). Torn apart by WWII and social convention, a second meeting holds promise for the couple. Glasgow Film Theatre. The First Day of the Rest of Your Life (Le premier jour du reste de ta vie) (15) ●●●●● (Rémi Bezançon, France, 2008) Jacques Gamblin, Zabou Breitman, Déborah Francois. 114min. Bezancon’s second feature explores the highs and lows of middle-class suburban family life. Split into five chapters, each of which offers the perspective of a different member of the ‘ordinary’ Duval clan, the film picks out five significant days in the characters’ lives. Ultimately, it presents a sentimental vision of ‘la vie famille’, even if there are some undeniably engaging performances. Cameo, Edinburgh.