Red Road - 2006

Movie #169

4 stars

Jackie's job as a security surveillance monitor in Glasgow allows her to journey into the lives of others...as well as her own.  Zooming from one camera to another, she sees someone from her past.  Jackie tries to understand the past but her future is just as perplexing.

Cast: Kate Dickie, Tony Curran, Martin Compston, Nathalie Press, Paul Higgins, Andrew Armour

Director: Andrea Arnold



This is the first film in the Advance Party series, a concept by Lars Von Trier (Antichrist), Lone Scherfig and Anders Thomas Jensen.  I am already excited.  I love Jensen...writer of Adam's Apples and After the Wedding.  The three films in this series have certain rules--  they must take place in Scotland, filmed within 6 weeks, have a budget of less than 1 million pounds and use the same characters.  This sounds pretty cool but I do have one concern...are 2 more movies going to be just as good as this one using the same characters.  They have big shoes to fill.


Like:  The concept is very interesting.  What would it be like to be able to see every single street...every single person walking in the US.  First of all, it would be creepy.  Second of all, it might be a whole lot safer.  Or more unsafe?  It all depends on the person in charge of keeping the people safe I suppose.

Like:  The shots of Glasgow were really cool.  But at the same time we only saw a couple of different places...mostly Red Road.

Dislike:  I thought I was pretty good at understanding people's accent but this movie was unbearable at times.  Some of the characters I could barely understand.  The main character, Jackie, was very easy to understand though.

Caution:  The sex scenes in this film were very very explicit...maybe even a little bit gross...but they were not in there just to have sex. It did add to the film.

Overall Recommendation:  Check it out...its one of those films that may seem a little slow moving but I assure you..everything is important.

The one thing to take away from this film:  Jackie was just trying to get along with her life...but in order to do so she had to confront her past.  When she had her head near the open window in the apartment it was as if she was breathing...really living...for the first time in a long time.

Mister Foe - 2007

Movie #126

3 stars

In a darkly twisted plot, teenage voyeur Hallam Foe (Jamie Bell) spies on his stepmother, Verity (Claire Forlani), through binoculars, finding himself irresistibly attracted to her even as he becomes convinced she murdered his mother. When Hallam flees to the city and meets a woman (Sophia Myles) who resembles his mother, his binocular-spying obsessions begin anew. But when Verity and his father track him down, will the truth surface?

Cast: Jamie Bell, Sophia Myles, Ciarán Hinds, Claire Forlani, Paul Blair, Ewen Bremner, Gerry Cleary, John Comerford, Stuart Hepburn, Jamie Sives, Maurice Roëves, Ruth Milne, John Paul Lawler, Kirsty Shepheard

Director: David Mackenzie


Tagline: Some people see life differently

Filming Location: Edinburgh, Scotland
Note: Although much of Hallam Foe is filmed in central Edinburgh, the film avoids showing Edinburgh Castle, which is visible from many of the real life locations. I did notice this

Likes: The writer was not afraid to make the characters F-ed up! I mean c'mon...Jamie Bell spies on people, is obsessed with boobs, he sleeps in his tree fort under a blown up picture of his dead mom, he wears war paint, sometimes wears his mothers dress, and pierced his ear with his mother's earring. CRAZZZY.

I guess the story was interesting and creepy at times but somewhat enjoyable. I really liked the scenes of Edinburgh...I think that if it was filmed in the US I would have given it a 2.5.

Dislikes: The music...it was sooo loud and it interrupted the storyline. The funny thing is...the soundtrack it thought to be good.

From Wikipedia: Domino Records provided the entire soundtrack with bands including Franz Ferdinand with their song Hallam Foe Dandelion Blow along with songs from James Yorkston, u.n.p.o.c., King Creosote, Sons and Daughters, Four Tet, Psapp, Juana Molina and Test Icicles, amongst others. The soundtrack has won several awards, and is integral to the film.

whaaa?

Another dislike is the fact that some parts were supposed to be dramatic...and well...they were comedic. Like the parts where Jamie Bell puts that crazy skunk head on (see below).

Overall Recommendation: You can watch this one as background entertainment