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Balibo (Review)

Anders Wotzke — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 12:56:35 +0000

If I ever needed a reminder as to why I love the art of film, I needn’t look further than Robert Connolly’s (Three Dollars, The Bank) political thriller Balibo. Based on the true story of the five Australian journalists who went missing weeks prior to Indonesia’s invasion of East Timor in 1975, Balibo is a momentous piece of storytelling, driven by powerhouse performances and sublime direction. Emotionally engaging from start to end, this is a profound cinematic experience that sheds damming light on a 34 year old blind-spot in Australasian history.

Don’t feel at all like you need to be familiar with the true-life events that took place in Balibo, a small village in East Timor that sits 10km from the Indonesian border, to appreciate what Connolly’s film has to offer. I myself knew very little about the Balibo Five going in (having been born 14 years after the events occurred). I knew even less about the sixth journalist, Roger East, who went to East Timor three weeks after the disappearance of the five journalists to investigate. Portrayed with great confliction Anthony LaPaglia (Without a Trace, The Bank), East is not immediately glorified as a journalistic hero in David Williamson and Robert Connolly’s screenplay. He’s introduced as a chain-smoking alcoholic, who appears to have given up his years of experience as a foreign correspondent to lead a simpler life. This changes when future East Timor president Jose Ramos-Horta (a standout Oscar Issac), then a charismatic scholar desperate to save his country from the impending Indonesian occupation, offers him a job managing the ‘free’ press in Timor. Declining at first, East changes his mind when Ramos-Horta informs him of the five missing Australian journalists – Greg Shackleton (Damon Gameau), Tony Stewart (Mark Leonard Winter) and Gary Cunningham (Gyton Grantley) of Channel 7 news and Brian Peters (Thomas Wright) and Malcolm Rennie (Nathan Phillips) of Channel 9 – who went to Timor in the hope of filming the unsanctioned Indonesian invasion. Since the Australian government has turned a blind eye to their disappearance, East decides to follow the trail of the young journalists, determined to discover their fate.

The narrative brilliance of Balibo derives from the way in which it frequently, yet seamlessly, cuts between Roger East’s investigation and extensive flashbacks of the five journalists as they traverse the same terrain four weeks prior. Authentically portrayed, we grow immensely fond of these people; on camera they are professional reporters, bravely acting as the spokespeople for the East Timorese and their plight. Off camera, they are genuinely relatable Aussie larrikins, lapping up the tropical sun and sharing stories with the children of local villages. It’s only as they draw closer to Balibo, where Indonesian battleships loom just off the coast, that the dangers of wartime journalism become all too real.

It’s at this moment that Balibo shifts well into gear and reveals itself as a gritty thriller. In what is by far the most tense and traumatic piece of cinema I have witnessed in years, the journalists find themselves caught on the frontline of the Indonesian invasion, forcing them into hiding as the ruthless militants occupy the village. Connolly skillfully utilises our invested interest in the these characters to gut wrenching effect, made all the more impacting due to Tristan Milani’s fluid handheld camerawork that centres us in the action. What transpires is now ingrained in history, despite the Australian government’s desperate attempt to have it buried as it would add further criticism towards their acquiescence of the Indonesian invasion.

As Connolly states himself, “Balibo is a story that demands to be told”. But it in the wrong hands, it could have been a disaster. It could have easily been another Pearl Harbor; a pretentious, overacted and unengaging film that’s more concerned with the box office than it is informing its audience. But aside from one oddly patriotic moment during the film’s affecting conclusion that almost sees LaPaglia break the forth wall, there’s not a pretentious bone in Balibo‘s body. It’s clear that Connolly went to great lengths to authentically bring this story to the screen, not only by adapting it from the book Cover Up, Jill Jolliffe’s in-depth case-study of the Balibo Five, but also by consulting with East Timor/Australian relations specialist Dr. Clinton Fernandes. Yet this is not simply a lesson of the past; Balibo‘s alarming observations of wartime journalism, as well as its critical look at the peacekeeping role of state governments and the United Nations, still greatly resonates today. But what makes Balibo essential viewing is that, on top of its past and present significance, it also happens to be one of the most captivating and thrilling films in years.

Verdict:

In what has already proven to be a stellar year for the Australian film industry, Robert Connolly’s Balibo – a truly haunting, edgy and enthralling political thriller -manages to raise the bar even further. This is Australian filmmaking at its most supreme.

Read our exclusive interview with Balibo director Robert Connolly and actor Damon Gameau (who plays Greg Shackleton) here.

- Originally posted July 16th, 2009.

Elegy (Guest Review)

Guest Review — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 06:49:13 +0000

An elegy is a mournful, melancholic or plaintive poem, especially a funeral song or a lament for the dead. An elegy can also reflect on something that seems strange or mysterious to the author. And so it is with Ben Kingsley as aging lothario David Kepesh, a reflection on the mysterious. The upset of his perfectly ordered life when beautiful Consuela Castillo (Penelope Cruz) comes crashing into it with a tender love causing him to question his shallow existence and opens up a gradual revealing of himself to be vulnerable no longer an impenetrable fortress against the world. This dominos into his fractured relationship with his son, Kenny Kepesh (perfectly restrained acting by Peter Sarsgaard), his best friend George (Dennis Hopper) and his wife Amy (a well-acted cameo by Blondie’s Deborah Harry) carrying him further and further into reflection of the walls he has built.

Brilliant performances from Ben Kingsley, Penelope Cruz, Dennis Hopper, Patricia Clarkson and Peter Sarsgaard absorb you into their character’s lives. Long time old buddies on the same playing field – George and David (Hopper and Kingsley) engage you in banter. Consuela (Cruz) creates a power shift over lothario David with her sexual history and sensuality and brings you to tears in her final heartbreaking revelation. Patricia Clarkson as David’s always on the road business woman/mistress, lets in glimpses of the real loneliness in their 20 years of “just sex”. David and Kenny Kepesh (Sarsgaard) as estranged father and son find themselves on common ground (adultery) and inch toward a poignant closure of their broken past.

With a great script by Nicolas Myer based upon a Philip Roth novel The Dying Animal, Elegy is a brilliant and subtly directed film by Spanish director Isabel Coixet. This romantic drama beautifully caresses to the surface themes of growth, love and finding a place in the world for us out of a selfish, self-centred and lonely… one.

- Review by Eddie Crismani

Elegy opens in select Australian cinemas April 9th.

Slumdog Millionaire (Review)

Anders Wotzke — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 14:09:35 +0000

One might say genre categorisation exists to give the prospective audience an inkling in to what sort of emotions they should expect the film to evoke. Yet British director Danny Boyle asks an elementary question; why? Why limit a film to one set of emotions when it has the potential to explore so much more?
His question is hypothetical, because he has already provided us with the answer. That answer is Slumdog Millionaire; a truly remarkable film that manages to be harrowing, stirring, tear-jerking, exhilarating and joyous all within its 120 minute runtime. You won’t need a lifeline to tell you that this is modern cinema at its best.

The lights dim, the thematic music kicks in and the crowd applaud to signal the biggest moment of Jamal Malik’s (Dev Patel) life; he has reached the last question on India’s ‘Who Wants to Be a Millionaire’. But how has a boy from the slums of Mumbai made it further on the show than the brightest minds have in the past? It’s a question that leads to Jamal’s arrest, under the suspicion of cheating. To prove his innocence, Jamal is forced to reveal the sometimes joyous but often tragic events of his childhood living in the slums with his older brother Saliem (Madhur Mittal) and friend Latika (Freida Pinto) and how their journey of survival lead him to the answer of each question.

Based on the novel Q and A by Vikas Swarup, Simon Beaufory’s screen adaptation intertwines the past with the present, splendidly building in suspense as the million dollar question looms closer. However, it’s the fairytale journey of hope and humanity leading up to the final question that is most captivating. Told in three different time frames, we first meet an adolescent Jamal in the most confrontational matter; being tortured in a cell in a hope he will reveal how he cheated. “He’s a tough guy”, the guard proclaims after he can’t get Jamal to talk. No wonder; we soon learn that most of Jamal’s life has been torture. His mother was killed during a anti-Muslim raid when he was a child, leaving him and his brother to beg and steal for food before returning to the junkyard they called home. With an admirable sense of optimism and belief in destiny, a young Jamal finds happiness from his newfound friend Latika, forming the foundation for a future love.

With a character this endearing, it’s near impossible not to get fully absorbed in Jamal’s story. It helps that each portrayal of Jamal is as excellent as the next, credibly developing the complexities of Jamal’s character and his unsteady relationship with his brother; a troubled boy torn between survival, greed and the responsibilities of being an older brother. Frieda Pinto as Latika also makes for a convincing love interest, if not simply for her radiant beauty, making the romantic sub-plot of destined love one of the most cordial of the year. Expect to see a lot more from this young cast in the future.

It doesn’t matter what director Danny Boyle is depicting –be it unsettling scenes of child exploitation or moments of melodramatic joy – it’s infinitely entertaining. Boyle’s direction has a remarkable energy that manages to seamlessly and satisfyingly blend together each and every dramatic shift in chronology, locale and sentiment. With a lucrative career not bound to a specific genre, Boyle uses his knowledge from each of his previous films to craft a truly unique experience. Certain scenes, such as those taking place on the Millionaire game show, lend from the slick visual presentation of his underrated sci-fi thriller Sunshine. The sweeping long-shots of India’s terrible poverty and unsightly trash field plains relate back to unsettling emptiness of the city streets in Boyle’s Zombie flick 28 Days Later. Yet the chase sequences in Slumdog carry the humour and energy of the directors most celebrated film Trainspotting. Last but not least, Boyle injects the humanity and charm ever present in his family film Millions into Jamal’s character and the films satisfying conclusion. So satisfying a conclusion, might I add, that it had me completely overcome with tears of joy.

Collectively, this vibrant blend of cinematic techniques is somewhat reminiscent of Baz Luhrmann’s modern and stylistic take of Romeo + Juliet. Yet unlike Luhrmann deliberately did, Boyle doesn’t overdo the melodrama to the point where it glosses over the often unsettling reality of each situation and setting. Instead, he strikes a solid balance between the two, turning what could have been a hard-hitting, solemn film into a tasteful crowd pleaser.

Conclusion:

Captivatingly told, dynamically directed and superbly acted; Slumdog Millionaire is near unfaultable.
The million dollar question here is;

Q: Is this the year’s best film?

A: Absolutely.

The Dark Knight (Review)

Anders Wotzke — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 06:58:36 +0000

“This town deserves a better class of criminal”, Heath Ledger’s Joker menacingly proclaims as he casually sets light to a monstrous mountain of money that ferociously burns to the ground, “…and I’m going to give it to them.”

This scene from the aptly titled The Dark Knight, the decidedly gloomy follow up to 2005’s relaunch of the Batman franchise, is indicative of the film on a whole. Let me clarify; with a spectacular array of action sequences alongside a star studded cast and crew, it’s not hard to see how such a grand project could be considered a gargantuan overindulgence even by Hollywood’s standards. Yet the man standing atop this mountain of money, the one responsible for igniting it, has made sure The Dark Knight is something much more than just an expensive summer blockbuster. In a film that is as breathtaking in its impeccable action as it is profound in its many societal observations, Christopher Nolan has made cinema goers everywhere realise that Hollywood deserves a better class of director. And by God, he’s given it to us.

Under Batman’s watch, the streets of Gotham are gradually being rid of the criminal underworld that once plagued the city. This does not occur without the help of District Attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), whose unyielding determination to clean up the city has become a beacon of hope for the people. So much so that Police Lieutenant James Gordon, Batman’s primary contact and trusted friend, asks Dent to help him perform a large operation to completely freeze the funds of the city’s mobsters. Dent also attracts the attention of billionaire Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale), not in the least because of Wayne’s long standing friendship with his new girlfriend Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal), but also to see if he could be the long awaited replacement to his Batman alter ego; a hero with a face that the city needs. However, the mob aren’t going down without a fight, and in desperation turn to a mysterious madman known only as The Joker (Heath Ledger), who offers to help dispose of the D.A. and the “Bat problem”. Yet his lunacy quickly becomes boundless and the trail of chaos and destruction he leaves in his wake causes many to question: just how safe is a city that allows a caped man to take the law into his own hands?

Note: The hidden section below (and only this section) contains spoilers and should only be read if you have seen the film. Click “Show” below to reveal the section.

[spoiler] Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer have composed a story that perfectly underpins the importance of hope, leadership and honour in a post 9/11 world. The new depiction of Gotham City is not the otherworldly metropolis it has been in the past; it’s a city recognisable to us all. People live here, not comic book characters. People who look towards the modern superhero, the fearless few willing to face adversity front on and lead their people onward. In this sense, Harvey Dent is the Barack Obama of this story. The promise of a brighter future ensues hope; “the night is always darkest before the dawn”. Yet Nolan also explores the biggest threat to such a character: chaos and its power to corrupt, the binary opposite to order and honour. The Joker is the definitive terrorist of the story, a madman who commits acts of supreme destruction simply because he enjoys watching the world burn. Much like the unforeseen events of 9/11, The Joker comes out of nowhere. His lunacy is never truly explained nor does it need to be. He is a reminder that good only ceases to exist because evil does. However, more terrifying and disastrous than any act of a madman is the loss of hope in a time when it’s needed most. This is why The Dark Knight is film more about the fall of Harvey Dent, and his descent into madness at the hands of the Joker, than it is about the caped crusader.

[/spoiler]

The screenplay itself, written by Christopher Nolan and his brother Jonathan, is excellent at bringing the story of order vs. chaos to fruition. For some it might feel overlong and convoluted, certainly lacking the clear cut direction of 2005’s Batman Begins. Yet the narrative here is in its the message: without hope, chaos reigns as being the only justice. The shifting direction of the story still manages to feel natural by being indicative of the madness of the Joker, representing the anarchic society he is out to create. Without sounding cheesy, the dialogue is a bank of memorable quotes; from Harvey Dent’s foreshadowing adage, “You either die a hero, or see yourself become the villain”, to the disturbing truth behind the Joker’s own observation, “Madness, as you know, is like gravity. All it takes is a little push.”

Of course, the story succeeds only because of the impeccable cast, stellar production values and a director that continues to do no wrong. The return of Christian Bale’s more credible portrayal of Batman, despite not being the only focus of the film this time around, is as exciting and engaging as ever. Whether he’s billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne or the incorruptible Dark Knight himself, Bale completely inhabits his role. If any criticism can be made, it’s that Bale’s Batman is not as developed during the film as it was in the previous film. But if you want character development, go and re-watch Batman Begins; this film is more concerned with how the other characters of Gotham city interact with the masked hero.

Also returning from the 2005 franchise reboot is Gary Oldman as Lieutenant Gordon, excellently portraying the film’s most challenging character as the only reliable enforcer of justice in an equable role that doesn’t allow for caricatured extremes. Aaron Eckhart is perfectly cast as Harvey Dent, possessing the charisma and demeanor required to make his character’s inevitable decline believably tragic. Yet it goes without saying that the late Heath Ledger’s Joker is the undeniable star of the show. If Bale inhabited the role of Batman, then The Joker inhabited Ledger; it’s difficult to believe there is someone behind the cracked and disfigured face. His grotesque appearance, unnerving enunciation and menacing cackle will haunt you long after the credits have rolled. Whilst at first Ledger’s tragic death overshadowed my ability to be completely enthralled by his performance, a second viewing without the lingering reminder of the tragedy has left me unquestionably in awe of his ability that will be sorely missed.

Yet my highest accolades for the film will always be for its director; Christopher Nolan. I’m not shy of confessing my adoration for this man. My love for cinema was partially ignited by his modern noir masterpiece Memento, which I still regard as his best work. Without a bad film to his name, he continues his legacy here as Hollywood’s most reliable and exciting director. Whilst decidedly mastering the art of storytelling in his past works, The Dark Knight is Nolan’s declaration that he can do action, and do it very well. Every action sequence in the film somehow outdoes the last and leaves you completely breathless. Unlike most directors, he can make a scene infinitely exciting without the overuse of rapid editing or the shaky handheld camera trick. By following the action logically, he gives the audience the sense of being a part of the scene and allows for the brute rawness of events to captivate without resorting to cinematic trickery. It’s not as seamless as the amazing single camera sequences in Children of Men, but it’s certainly more exciting to watch than the over-edited action of Quantum of Solace or the painfully shaky camera that tainted the Bourne series.

Where possible, Nolan prefers not to resort to the use of CGI; explosions are actual explosions and crashes are actual crashes, and it’s all the more breathtaking for it. That hospital scene would not nearly be as remarkable to watch without the two distinctive elements of Nolan’s direction that I have stated above. Whilst the absence of a soundtrack in this scene works to heighten its impact, the tremendous score by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard underpins every other memorable scene, seamlessly shifting between heart thumping orchestral compositions and harrowing siren-like string sections. All things considered, it’s safe to assume that blockbuster movies — heck, movies full stop – don’t get much better than this.

Verdict:

Christopher Nolan not only delivers the definitive Batman film, he delivers the definitive action film while he’s at it. He has reminded us that summer blockbusters don’t have to be mindless action films; they can also be intricately woven commentators on modern society.

Chances are you’ve seen it already, but I highly recommend seeing The Dark Knight again on High Definition Blu-ray to get the complete experience. [rating: 5/5]