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Tag Archives: Biopic

Stronger

09 Monday Oct 2017

Posted by Ben Whittaker in Movie Reviews

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Tags

Biopic, Boston, Cinema, David Gordon Green, Drama, Film, Film Review, Jake Gyllenhaal, Jeff Bauman, Movie, Movie Review, Stronger, Tatiana Maslany

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via rogerebert.com

“Stronger” is directed by David Gordon Green and stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Jeff Bauman, a man who lost his legs during the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013.

This film is as much about acceptance, overcoming adversity, and taking ownership of your responsibilities as it is about Jeff’s recovery from a life-changing injury, and Green does well to frame the entire movie around these themes.

stronger

via sbs.com.au

At the start of “Stronger” Jeff is a funny, likeable, care-free man chasing a girl he’s been dating on-and-off for a prolonged period of time. Immediately the idea that Jeff doesn’t show up is planted in the audience’s mind as Erin (played by Tatiana Maslany) cites this as one of the reasons why she recently broke up with him, and it’s this character trait which sparks the conflict of the movie into motion.

In this film just as in real life Jeff goes to the Boston Marathon to cheer Erin on, attempting to displace the aforementioned idea that he isn’t reliable and therefore isn’t a good choice of partner. In doing so his life is altered dramatically as not only does he lose his legs but he also identifies one of the bombers from memory and becomes a local hero in the process.

Stronger3

via 133.242.151.193/pmstudio/images/Stronger3.jpg

This movie works on a number of levels – in one sense it’s a film about coping with a horrific injury and the trauma that comes with that, but in another it’s a story about handling celebrity whilst struggling to keep a stable personal life. It’s a very complex and emotionally affecting drama which is made all the more powerful by two immaculate lead performances from Gyllenhaal and Maslany.

The love story between Jeff and Erin is the thread that ties the film together and it’s worth saying that Maslany is perfect as Erin. Erin is devoted to Jeff throughout the film and loves him sincerely, but before the accident she was tired of putting up with his lack of dependability and although Jeff’s injuries create an obligation for her she’s strong enough to do what’s right for herself regardless of the situation that she’s in.

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via s3.amazonaws.com

She’s a very well-realised and relatable character and she certainly isn’t a plot device in this movie. She doesn’t feel as though she’s there to act as a pawn in Jeff’s story and if anything this is as much a film about her as it is about him – as she points out in the movie Jeff’s injury didn’t just happen to him, it happened to all the people that love him and are there for him every day.

To summarise, “Stronger” is a wonderful movie about a painful event in our recent history and a family’s struggle to recover from something that they never could’ve expected. It tackles its subject matter with care and within the ugliness there’s plenty of joy to be found. The visuals are harrowing, the performances are fantastic, and from start to finish I was emotionally invested in what was happening.

8/10

Legend

21 Monday Sep 2015

Posted by Ben Whittaker in Movie Reviews

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Biopic, Brian Helgeland, British Crime, Cinema, Crime, Emily Browning, Film, Frances Shea, Gangster Movie, Kray Twins, Legend, London, Movie Review, Reggie Kray, Ronnie Kray, The Krays, Thriller, Tom Hardy

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via target-media.co.uk

“Legend” is the latest British crime film to tackle the infamous Kray twins, Ronnie and Reggie, both played by Tom Hardy. There’s a lot to like about this brutal thriller, with Tom Hardy’s performance(s) highlighting the fact that he’s one of the best actors around right now. However, Brian Helgeland’s film suffers from a real lack of focus and identity, and as a result it feels drawn out and confused, failing to leave a lasting impression following its lacklustre conclusion.

The film chronicles the events which led to the Kray brothers ‘ruling London’ and concludes with their downfall, which is ultimately caused by their self-destructive tendencies. “Legend” also tells the story of how Reggie met Frances Shea (Emily Browning), his future wife, and it attempts to take a stab at the psychological torment that she suffered at his hands.

Sadly, Frances doesn’t feel like a fully-formed character. We’re immediately told that she’s fragile, but apart from that there’s very little to her. We never find out if she had a pre-existing mental condition or if Reggie was just a terrible husband (although he definitely was a terrible husband), and as such it isn’t clear what we’re supposed to make of her. It’s a sensitive topic because this is a true story, but I don’t think that she was done justice; I never felt a connection to her as a character, nor did I feel that she showed a different side to Reggie, so her inclusion lacked any real weight.

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via bustle.com

Their relationship wasn’t really developed because we didn’t see Reggie’s affection for Frances behind closed doors, nor did we see Frances stand up to Reggie for breaking multiple promises. There was no honesty or affection in the relationship as portrayed in this movie, nor was there a proper transition from love to hatred between the pair, so their conflict just wasn’t very interesting.

As I’ve mentioned, the film lacks a central focus and doesn’t seem to have a clear goal. I’m not really sure what Brian Helgeland was going for at all – is it a straight-up gangster movie? Is it a tragic romance? Or is it a full-on biopic? I struggle to see how it can profess to be any of these things.

We don’t see Ronnie and Reggie being gangsters very often – they’re not out breaking legs and busting balls all the time. It can’t really be seen as a tragic romance because there’s no romance to speak of between Reggie and Frances – we never see them have an intimate moment, in fact, we don’t even see them kiss with passion; we see nothing but a gangster exploiting a young woman. Finally, I don’t think that “Legend” can be taken as a true-to-life biopic, because there are too many discrepancies in the way that the brothers are depicted – it’s all speculative rather than factual. So, this film ends up touching on each of these aspects yet failing to execute on all counts, making it a bit of a mess overall.

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via telegraph.co.uk

The performances are good which is the main thing to take away from the film, but they can’t elevate it to an exceptional level. Tom Hardy is excellent as always, showing that he’s the best in the business at playing unhinged men with raw physical power. He comes across as capable of doing real damage as both men, and he really does seem crazy as Ronnie, even if that leads to his performance verging on ridiculous at certain points.

Alas, not even Tom Hardy could save “Legend” from mediocrity, as it doesn’t do anything that hundreds of films from the genre haven’t done before; we’ve seen rivalling factions, psychotic gangsters, and the larger-than-life nature of crime in the past, so there’s nothing exciting to show here. Furthermore, the unnecessary voiceover from Emily Browning acted as a constant distraction, and I can’t help but think that the film would’ve been better served if it chose one particular focus, or at least had a clear tone. It tried to be funny and threatening, but at the end of the day it didn’t make me laugh and I couldn’t take it seriously – it was just a bit dull. Without a clear direction, “Legend” falls into the category of okay but not memorable, which is perhaps the worst thing that a movie can be.

6/10

The Theory of Everything

13 Friday Feb 2015

Posted by Ben Whittaker in Movie Reviews

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Tags

A Brief History of Time, Albatross, Best Actor, Best Picture, Biography, Biopic, Cinema, Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Film, Golden Globes, Jane Hawking, Les Miserables, Movie Review, Science, Space, Stephen Hawking, The Oscars, The Theory of Everything, The Universe, Time

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via filmhoek.nl

Stephen Hawking is a brilliant scientist, he’s a man known in almost every household and his theories affect how we understand the universe, even if we don’t know that it was him that came up with the ideas we appeal to. However, what a lot of people don’t think about when Stephen Hawking is mentioned is that there was a time before he was famous, a time before his work was so influential, a time when he was just like everyone else.

“The Theory of Everything” wants you to realise that this man has gone through a hell of a lot in his lifetime, and his story is both triumphant and inspirational. There was a time when Stephen Hawking had to wake up in the morning, knowing that there would be a day in which he wouldn’t be able to walk, talk or even move, and yet he still had the courage to finish his PhD, raise three children and love his wife. This is an amazing story if ever there was one, and I am so glad that I took the time to see it told.

This is a biopic, so the only thing that you really need to know about the story is that it attempts to capture some of the most significant moments in Stephen Hawking’s life (as well as the life of his first wife, Jane, played by Felicity Jones). At the start of the movie I thought things were moving along slightly too quickly, because there were things I wanted to know, such as what Hawking’s relationship with his parents was like, but that’s just a testament to the achievements Stephen Hawking has made during his life.

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via hbo.com

There wasn’t enough time in this movie to explore such things, because this is a romantic drama in its purest form, and in order to really develop the relationship between Stephen (played by Eddie Redmayne) and Jane, time had to be spent fleshing out their characters. That development paid off nicely; I was very impressed with the emotion that the two were able to create throughout the movie, and I have no real complaints about the direction this film took when chronicling the events of Hawking’s life.

The acting in “The Theory of Everything” is spectacular, and I’m so pleased that Eddie Redmayne won a Golden Globe for his performance. He really is fantastic, and of all the people that were nominated, I believe that his was both the best performance, and the most difficult performance to pull off. He had to be so careful and sensitive in portraying such a brilliant man, because he isn’t just playing the part of a person suffering from motor neurone disease, (which would be challenging enough), he’s also attempting to capture Hawking’s likeness and character. From what I have seen and read, I understand that he did that incredibly well, so well in fact that Hawking reportedly felt as though he was looking in a mirror when he saw the film.

There can be no question that Redmayne pulled off the role in a very impressive way, and after about twenty minutes he really does become Stephen Hawking. There’s no underlying thought in your mind telling you that you’re watching a man playing pretend, which is amazing when you really think about it. I completely forgot that I was watching an actor play his role, which always enhances my enjoyment of a movie, and adds to my appreciation of it when I leave the cinema.

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via amazonaws.com

Felicity Jones played her part wonderfully in this film, portraying a sense of sadness throughout, despite the fact that she’s always smiling and making the best of her situation. She made me believe in the character, because she conveyed how painful her life was, which in turn showed just how much Jane loved her husband, refusing to walk away no matter what the cost would be to her own happiness. It was a tragic love story, made all the more heartbreaking by the clear chemistry between the two leading actors. Both Redmayne and Jones have been in great movies before, with Redmayne recently appearing in “Les Miserables”, and Jones playing one of the main roles in “Albatross”, a personal favourite film of mine, so I hope that the fact that they carried this movie on their young shoulders will lead to them getting some major roles in the future.

The most surprising and wonderful thing about “The Theory of Everything” is that it is very funny, despite the fact that its subject matter is undeniably serious and at times extremely upsetting. Redmayne gives Hawking real personality, and shows that there is a cheeky, boisterous side to the man that the public thinks they know so well. This is a side of Hawking which in reality we don’t get to see, so to get a glimpse of what he’s like behind closed doors feels very special.

There are moments in this movie when you really do laugh, despite the fact that seconds before you were close to tears, because in spite of everything, Hawking (as a character) doesn’t take himself too seriously, and delivers some hilarious and self-deprecating one liners. These comedic moments do a great job of making sure that the subject matter doesn’t become overwhelming, and they take the film away from tearjerker territory. They play a key role in making the film what it is, as this isn’t supposed to be a depressing tale, it’s a story of overcoming great odds and triumphing over adversity, because after all, Hawking was given two years to live, and has completely surpassed that expectation.

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via pmcvariety.files.wordpress.com

There are two lines in the movie which cement that fact into your mind; the first comes early in the movie, just after Hawking’s diagnosis, in which his father tells Jane that this will be a ‘very heavy defeat’, and the second comes towards the end, as that prediction has been proved wrong, and Hawking states that ‘there should be no limit to human endeavour’. That’s what this movie is all about, the fact that no matter what happens to you or how bad it gets, you can always make the best out of what you have, and that in doing so you have succeeded in your life. It doesn’t matter what the world throws at you, as long as you are here, you have to throw everything you have right back at it.

The subject matter was dealt with in a refreshing and interesting way, showing that this man is just that, and that despite his intelligence he’s still flawed. People like Stephen Hawking become something strange in everyday life, they become an idea in our heads, and we don’t stop to appreciate that they’re just like us. I’m close to the age that Hawking would’ve been when he was diagnosed, I’m in the process of completing my degree, and I have genuine ambitions, hopes and dreams which right now feel like they are available, but very far away. I don’t know what I would do if I faced what Hawking did, but I know that he is extraordinary for coping, and that his wife (as portrayed in this movie) is also a truly astounding woman. This movie makes you stop and think about what people are truly capable of, it has something relevant to say about the nature of our existence, and it isn’t just cashing in on one man’s amazing story.

All in all, “The Theory of Everything” is a fantastic film. It’s wonderfully executed, well performed, and shows restraint when telling an incredible story. As a biopic it’s almost perfect, because it makes you feel something for its characters, whilst also inspiring you to want to be more and make more of yourself. When you leave the cinema, having seen this film, you’ve acquired a new perspective and appreciation for a man that you already knew was exceptional, which is all that you could possibly ask for.

9/10

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