Suffragette (2015)

Directed by Sarah Gavron
Country: USA

Movie Review: Sarah Gavron’s “Suffragette” is a fact-based period drama, set in London, whose intention is to dramatize a notable span in the life of the 24-year-old laundress, Maud Watts (Carey Mulligan), who joins a feminine movement to fight for the women’s rights in a society dominated by often abusive men who are not willing to give up their prolonged hegemony. Noble intentions aside, the film works very intermittently, only managing to escape the extreme banality due to the great performances of a cast that besides Mulligan also includes Anne Marie-Duff, Helena Bonham Carter, and the revered Meryl Streep, in the kind of a cameo appearance, as the movement’s fugitive leader. The intended riotous tones scarcely hit me, maybe because Ms. Gavron decided to include a lame musical score into a drama that proved problematic in terms of direction. Her sophomore feature exhibits annoying zooms and unsteady frames, and is more concerned with drawing some tears from the viewers rather than exhibiting these women's great deeds with vigor and straightforwardness. This way, what should have been a catching and powerful work, becomes a conventional, tepid melodrama.

The Danish Girl (2015)

Directed by Tom Hooper
Country: UK / USA / Germany

Movie Review: In Tom Hooper’s pseudo-biographical drama, “The Danish Girl”, Eddie Redmayne plays Einar Wegener, a Danish painter who couldn’t go on with his married life after embodying Lili Elbe, his female persona. Einar was married to another bohemian painter, Gerda, performed tightly by Alicia Vikander, who, after the initial shock, becomes surprisingly supportive of her husband’s difficult decision of submitting himself to a sex reassignment surgery, a pioneering step in the gender transition prospect, since this fictionalized biopic is set in 1926 Copenhagen. Beautifully photographed by Danny Chen, who works with Mr. Hooper for the third time after “Les Miserables” and the acclaimed “The King’s Speech”, the drama exhibits a delicate sensitivity and is adorned with polished strokes, conferring it lyrical touches. It often induces a sort of relaxation when combining the vividly colored images, displaying the splendorous Danish architecture and interior settings, with the smooth musical score, but never forgetting to include the crucial emotion in order to compose the whole. We can follow how Lili changes from a primal state of confusion to a most inevitable, radical, and irreversible decision toward happiness. Everything started when Einar attends one of those recurrent boring parties dressed as a woman, immediately drawing the attention of Henrik (Ben Whishaw), a gallant young man who throws one first kiss, reawaking Lili’s true nature, once and for all. Being simultaneously considerate and perceptive, Gerda, who had initially agreed to a few ignominious therapies for her husband, gives up the idea that he can be cured. She deals with the fact with sadness, but is suddenly struck by a different hope when her drawings of Lily receive an enthusiastic welcome by the prestigious gallery she had been in contact for so long. The couple moves to Paris, and Hans Axgil (Matthias Schoenaerts), an art dealer who also happens to be Einar’s childhood friend, comes close and feels attracted to Gerda. This account of a strangely disarming relationship, adapted by Lucinda Coxon from David Ebershoff’s novel of the same, is given to us at a moderate pace and presented with a perhaps too polite artistry. As in “The King’s Speech”, Tom Hooper uses this premeditated refinement that bestows enough dramatic depth to “The Danish Girl”, without, however, achieving the same triumphant results.

45 Years (2015)

Directed by Andrew Haigh
Country: UK

Movie Review: “45 Years” is a distinguished, high-quality British drama, which I recommend without reservations. The director, Andrew Haigh, who already had convinced me of his filmmaking capabilities with the acclaimed drama, “Weekend”, centered on a gay relationship, was fortunate to work with Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay, two of the most extraordinary actors of their generation, whose monumental performances I can’t praise enough (both were awarded a more than deserved Silver Berlin Bear). They respectively play, Kate and Geoff Mercer, an apparently balanced couple living almost secluded in the beautiful English countryside. Within a week, the childless couple is going to celebrate their 45th wedding anniversary, to take place in an elegant space in town, and the occasion involves some preparation work so everything can run smoothly. We can sense a mature, warm tenderness on their voices and behavior, despite some debilitation evinced by the retired Geoff, who was subjected to a bypass surgery five years before, the reason why they’re celebrating the 45th anniversary instead of the usual 40th. Suddenly, the arrival of an atypical letter, sent by the Swiss authorities, disturbs the composure of their rustic lives. The letter informs that the body of Geoff’s ex-girlfriend, Katya, was found in the Alpine mountains, preserved underneath the ice since 50 years ago, when she fell down from a precipice. This unanticipated news, which should have been faced with tranquility, inflicts deep transformations in Geoff, who starts having a relentless necessity of talking about Katya. Kate, who shows a salutary openness to talk about everything, is struck not only by a natural jealousy but also by an uncontrollable curiosity that leads her into a nebulous period of Geoff’s past. The biting reality makes her feel betrayed, letting us envision a painful bitterness for the years to come. Mr. Haigh’s camera lens places its focal point on the characters, soulfully capturing the restless and heavily disappointed look of Kate, as well as the partially camouflaged inner turmoil of Geoff who grows pensive in attitude and reckless in appearance. Not infrequently, the images are quite sharp over the subjects, but intensify the out of focus background. This aspect, intentionally or not, has a parallel with this reflective tale when depicting a supposedly unclouded present sapped by a blurry past. Timeless and progressively enthralling, “45 Years” ends in an excruciatingly heartbreaking way at the sound of ‘Smoke Gets in Your Eyes’. My favorite of 2015.

Catch Me Daddy (2014)

Directed by: Daniel Wolfe
Country: UK

Movie Review: The bleak independent drama, “Catch Me Daddy”, envelops us in a gripping multicultural story set under the grey skies of the Yorkshire Moors, England. The newcomer Sameena Jabeen Ahmed plays Laila, a carefree Pakistani girl who runs away from his dad’s house to go living with her doped English boyfriend, Aaron (Connor McCarron). Her father is both concerned and ashamed, as well as her brother, Zaheer (Ali Ahmad), who goes after her with a group of unscrupulous mercenaries. At some point, the solution found to make Aaron and Laila give up was making Aaron’s mother a hostage and blackmailing him. The thugs attain their intents, but the story ends up in tragedy, bringing irreparable damages for everyone. In a small town with limited places to go, the chances of being found are higher. The harsh and stressful circumstances separate every single character from happiness. The ones who were trying to find some peace and change their lives are consumed by the darkness while the ones already living in the dark, like the middle-aged cocaine addicted and mercenary, Tony (Gary Lewis), sinks deeper and deeper in the obscurity of their actions. The plot, co-written by the debutant director Daniel Wolfe (also connected with the world of video music) and his brother Matthew, is disconcerting and profoundly severe, balancing quite well the violent and the emotional, as well as alternating between love and hate associated with the family. Some of the nocturnal images were deliberately pitch-dark, an understandable and justified option of Mr. Wolfe who also selected an eclectic score containing songs by Patti Smith and Tim Buckley. The cast, encompassing both experienced and non-professionals, was competent and convincing enough to make us believe that this story could have really happened. The nightmarish “Catch Me Daddy”, whose director has described it as a modern Western, leaves us suspended by its inconclusive finale. It won’t be a good option for the fans of mainstream cinema, and only the more optimistic ones will find a tiny margin for hope here.

Man Up (2015)

Directed by: Ben Palmer
Country: UK / France

Movie Review: “Man Up”, Ben Palmer’s second comedy in four years after the humdrum “The Inbetweeners Movie”, starts feverishly interesting but eventually decreases in quality in the second half where the clichés and fabricated romantic situations take hold of the screwball scenario set in the modern London. The charismatic Lake Bell (“In a World…”) plays the unmarried 34-year-old Nancy, whose first appearance is in front of a hotel room’s mirror, talking to herself while trying to gain sufficient confidence to participate in her friends' themed wedding party. Even fed up of dating and having no high expectations on love, Nancy will become the protagonist of a mind-boggling situation when she mistakenly goes on a blind date with Jack, played by the great Simon Pegg (“Hot Fuzz”, “Shaun of the Dead”), an online marketing manager who’s about to divorce his wife. Nancy was simply taken by the odd circumstances of being in a train station, at the right time, with the book ‘Six billion people and you’ in her hand, the same book that Jessica (Ophelia Lovibond), the one Jack was initially to meet with, was supposed to carry to signalize her presence. Nancy decides to miss her family party, and totally embraces this unanticipated opportunity. Despite the mention of a huge jalapeño between her teeth, the couple has lots of fun and the conversation flows without embarrassments, only until Nancy bumps into Shaun (Rory Kinnear), a disturbing old school friend who happens to be the barman at the bowling pub where they were playing. Shaun demands to Nancy nothing else but a blowjob not to reveal her secret to Jack, who gets really upset when he finds them in the restroom. The truth is unveiled not without the indispensable arguments, and the things only calm down again when they decide to have a drink at the bar where Jack’s wife usually pops up. The film’s pose oscillates between casual and sassy while the dialogue, often peppered with unsuccessful sex jokes, was never too creative or smart to cheer me up. Unfortunately, the actors’ efforts weren’t enough to make us forget the constant ups and downs of Tess Morris’ screenwriting, which reaches its weaker point with the weary, ridiculous finale.

Honeytrap (2014)

Directed by: Rebecca Johnson
Country: UK

Movie Review: Rebecca Johnson’s “Honeytrap”, despite satisfying as a whole, struggles to attain a sustainable balance during its different sections, provoking mixed feelings when the script and its execution are confronted. If its story evinced great potentiality, the approach not always pulled off the most desirable results. Making a good use of the structure, in which the ends meet, the film follows Layla (Jessica Sula), a good-looking 15-year-old girl who moves to a small town located in the South London’s poor district of Brixton to live with her estranged mother. Even giving the sensation that she’s happy with the change, Layla doesn’t have the support and attention she needs at this crucial point of her life because her indifferent mother, Shiree (Naomi Ryan), shows no more availability than a few minutes of conversation when not in the nightclub where she works or in the company of some lousy boyfriend. When attending a new school, Layla is definitely not prepared to handle the brutality of a milieu where physical and psychological aggressions are a painful reality. Even though, there’s always someone friendly, which is the case of the good-natured Shaun (Ntonga Mwanza) who has true feelings for her. But the degrading scenario gets darker after she bumps into the vile Troy (Lucien Laviscount), a relatively successful rapper whose intentions are everything but pure. Domineering and authoritarian, Troy uses and abuses of the ‘blind’ Layla, whose uncontrolled passion, naivety, and submission will lead her to shame when she agrees to become his accomplice in a hideous crime. Before that, in a complete disorientation, she almost takes her life away when she finds out Troy's true nature. This is the kind of film that you can sense it’s going to end haplessly since its very beginning. The storytelling of Ms. Johnson, who was inspired by real-life events, reveals a sort of urgency in taking us to the despair of this teenager. It feels realistic most of the time, however, occasionally a few noticeable melodramatic moments, enhanced by the uninspired score, tend to push its mood to an objectionable side.

Anti-Social (2015)

Directed by: Reg Traviss
Country: UK / Hungary

Movie Review: Greg Traviss’ expendable heist movie “Anti-Social” was unable to find a stabilized energy and never attained the desired maturity to impress, being relegated to those mediocre attempts that rely on fabricated scenes and flimsy resolutions, which infuriates instead of satisfying, with the easiness of the happenings and the wasted time (almost two hours in this case). The story, written by the heavy-handed Mr. Traviss, is set in Central London and follows two half-brothers who opt for unequal paths in life despite their proximity. Dee (Gregg Sulkin) is a graffiti artist who sometimes has to flee from the police for painting the street walls of his neighborhood. Carrying strong social-political messages, his art is still not as much respected as he would like, but has the power to draw the attention of a German artist who invites him to Berlin. His beamish girlfriend, Kirsten (Meghan Markle), offers all the support he needs and really believes in what he does, while his older brother, Marcus (Josh Myers), makes part of a gang of four motorcyclists who are known for robbing valorous jewelry around town. Besides this risky activity, the latter is associated with the organized crime, rivaling with another dangerous gang. By using a sexy woman as bait, the rival gang manages to perpetuate a precise attack, stealing drug packages and later shooting Marcus, who, recovering at the hospital, is out of the next heist, the biggest and riskiest so far. With no time to think and a necessity for solving the imbroglio, Marcus and his gang can only rely on the conscientious Dee. Even against his nature, the artist-turned-malefactor consents to participate in the holdup as a carrier, only to protect his brother and (why not?) taking the opportunity to guarantee his own future, financially speaking. Visually unpolished and with powerless performances, “Anti-Social” probably won’t attract many moviegoers with its constant plot shifts, mismanaged drama, sugary romance, and debilitating action. It’s an embarrassing incursion into the Londoner underworld crime and the art world in general.

A Brilliant Young Mind (2014)

Directed by: Morgan Matthews
Country: UK

Movie review: Morgan Matthews is an English documentarian whose latest, “A Brilliant Young Mind”, marks his fictional debut feature. The fact-based drama, written by James Graham, arises as a consequence of his own TV documentary from 2007, “Beautiful Young Minds”, so he never really moves out his comfort zone. The actual prodigious, Daniel Lightwing, was the one who served as inspiration. In the film, he was given the name, Nathan Ellis (Asa Butterfield), a 9-year-old boy who always had a knack for patterns, a fact that turned him into a math genius. The bashful Ellis also had a traumatic past since he was seated next to his father when he died in a terrible car accident. On that same day, he had been diagnosed with a form of autism and was being given all the support from his father who encouraged him saying: ‘don’t be afraid of what you have. It’s like having special powers.’ His understanding and super-devoted mother, Julie (Sally Hawkins), decides to enroll him in a school where the unorthodox professor, Martin Humphries (Rafe Spall), who often abuses of his medication for multiple sclerosis, will take the responsibility to prepare him the best he can to represent Great Britain in the International Mathematical Olympiad that’s about to happen in Taiwan. Not only Nathan feels and understands love for the first time, but also his mother starts a relationship with the insecure Martin. The young Asa Butterfield gives a valid performance as the introverted, picky, frank, and yet bright student, but overall the film is conducted in conventional tones, bringing immediately into mind other math-related movies such as “A Beautiful Mind”, “The Theory of Everything”, and “Good Will Hunting”. It’s indeed a heartwarming drama spurred by feel-good attitudes and honorable intentions, but I must object that there are no effective surprises in the story, as well as nothing fresh in the way it’s told. You may find yourself wishing the things were handled distinctively since the film shatters our highest expectations, becoming nearly a disappointment.

Mr. Holmes (2015)

Directed by: Bill Condon
Country: UK / USA

Movie Review: “Mr. Holmes” might not ring a bell for the less attentive, but if the name Sherlock was mentioned somewhere in the title, you would instantly guess that the film is about one of the most famous detectives in our planet. However, the year is 1947, and Sherlock Holmes, magnificently played by Sir Ian McKellen, is long-time retired with 93 years old, getting more and more debilitated, forgetful, and a fusion of emotional and a bit grumpy. Regardless these changes, he’s still polite, efficiently assertive when transmitting information, and conscious about his own errors from the past. Returned from a recent trip to Japan that brought him good and bad surprises, Mr. Holmes is happy to be at his farmhouse in the English countryside, where he solely has the company of his devoted housekeeper, Mrs. Munro (Laura Linney), and her young son, Roger (Milo Parker). The latter is very clever and shares the same enthusiasm for mystery cases and bees as the detective, who takes pleasure in teaching every detail of beekeeping while stimulates the boy’s perceptiveness about his own writings and those of his ex-partner, Dr. Watson. Nonetheless, not everything is easy, and the old Holmes struggles every single day with his memory and with a particular case that keeps coming to his rusty mind, involving a depressed woman called Anne Kelmot (Hattie Morahan). This is the second collaboration between McKellen and filmmaker Bill Condon, who directs with the same rigor and formalism that he has already accustomed us; the first one was 17 years ago, with the mesmerizing “Gods and Monsters”. Here, the heartfelt story, based on Mitch Cullin’s novel, “A Slight Trick of the Mind”, is more about aging and how to learn from our experiences in life, than really solving a mysterious murder case. For this reason, “Mr. Holmes” might not be a good choice for the ones looking for puzzles and enigmas. It’s not a perfect film, but Mr. McKellen’s performance together with the undaunted message conveyed with gentle, resolute tones, makes it slightly above the average.

Amy (2015)

Directed by: Asif Kapadia
Country: UK

Movie Review: Asif Kapadia’s documentary “Amy” about the British singer and songwriter Amy Winehouse is pretty absorbing but not so intense as his 2010’s “Senna” about the Brazilian F1 pilot, Ayrton Senna. In its first part, the film chronicles the ascension of the young artist, so profuse in the unique, eclectic pop-jazz that also finds its ground on soul, rhythm and blues, and reggae. Mr. Kapadia assembles home footage and audio voice recordings of her friends and family to describe how Amy gave the big jump from an unknown teen girl of Southgate, London, to one of the most appreciated singers/composers of our times, attaining the desired fame that, as she predicted, would drive her mad. The second part maintains the methodology, focusing more on the troubles and fall of the vocal talent who reached the glory with only two albums. The ones who were so important in Amy’s life, gave their contribution to the film: from her weak mother, Janis, and opportunist father, Mitch, to her childhood friends, Lauren Gilbert and Juliette Ashby; from her first manager, Nick Shymansky, and her bodyguard, Andrew Morris, to several musicians and producers who accompanied her in studio and on tour. Mandatorily, Kapadia emphasized her problematic relationship with Blake Fielder, who would become her husband and partner on the consumption of heavy drugs. The situation rapidly went out of control and Amy died in 2011 at the age of 27, victim of alcohol poisoning, alone at her home in Camden, London. The film, thoroughly edited by Chris King, comprehends concerts, partnerships (featuring Tony Bennett), prizes, health problems (eating disorders and bulimia), substances abuse, media invasion, depression, unconditional love, and regret for letting friends behind or sorrow for sometimes having been abandoned by some of them. The narrative cohesion was laudable, but the film kind of loses some grip in the last third, in part because, at that time, Amy’s life didn’t have much more to offer than failed rehabs and sad relapses into addiction.

Kajaki (2014)

Directed by: Paul Katis
Country: UK / Jordan

Movie Review: Powerful, drastically visceral, and relentlessly tense, is how “Kajaki”, the first fictional feature length from Paul Katis, who also co-produces, can be described. Written by Tom Williams, the plot was based on the true story of Mark Wright, a British soldier who died near the Kajaki dam, located in Afghanistan’s Helmand province, in 2006, after stepping on a mine when he was trying to help harmed soldiers of his small unit. Despite the inspiration for the film has come from Wright, played by David Elliot, the main character here is the platoon’s brave medic, Paul ‘Tug’ Hartley, magnificently embodied by Mark Stanley. The soldiers were sent to a top hill observation post with a view of the dried dam, which revealed to be a treacherous minefield. We have to wait 28 minutes for the first raw scene that opens the hostilities with these occult enemies, silently waiting for someone to activate them and cause destruction. A few days after watching this shocker, several images are still engraved on my mind. The viewers shall be prepared to deal with agonizing frames whose realism conveys the human suffering, frustration, and despair, in a very impressive way. I utterly jumped from my seat at every burst, taken by surprise and completely appalled by the flesh-and-blood that get completely out of control when the morphine is not enough to produce the desirable effects, and when the helicopter that should aid them is not really helping at all, triggering even more tension and consternation. With mutilated young men lying on the ground, in panic, I wanted to cry with them. My indignation increased when, at the end, we are informed about the medals of honor given to these men – what do these medals mean, if these damn wars and operations can make you handicapped for the rest of your life, if not dead? “Kajaki” hits you bluntly, causing turbulent emotional reactions.

Still (2014)

Directed by: Simon Blake
Country: UK

Movie Review: “Still”, Simon Blake’s debut as writer-director, is a drama in the guise of thriller that didn’t succeed neither as a piece of storytelling nor in the way it was approached and executed. The story, set in North London, revolves around Tom (Aidan Gillen), a photographer whose life spanned into alcohol and drugs after the death of his teen son in a hit-and-run accident. Tom tries to maintain a good relationship with his ex-wife Rachel, with whom he occasionally meets to visit their son’s grave. However, she doesn’t seem so lost or consumed by guilt as he is. Even depressive, he’s making an effort to put his life in order, relying on his new dynamic girlfriend, Christina, and on his long-time best friend, Ed, a journalist that starts investigating a case related to the murder of a bullied kid. Coincidently, when assigned for a school’s photoshoot, Tom becomes a great supporter of Jimmy, the brother of the kid who died, also a victim of bullying. If this coincidence wasn’t enough, he starts to be provoked and threatened by the same group of teen kids who keep spreading the chaos on the streets and at school, after he has accidentally collided with one of them. Fear dominates the man just until his girlfriend is raped and Jimmy is violently beaten up. From then on, the inebriate photographer will formulate his revenge that will push him into the darkness of an inescapable alley. Depressively inauspicious, “Still” nurtures a couple of good ideas at its core, which were never developed to reach favorable outcomes. It moves like a TV movie and its plot is excessively fortuitous. If only Mr. Blake had ripen his ideas and then set up a completely different atmosphere, maybe the film wouldn’t appear so much as a rudimentary draft. Consequently, don’t bother trying to look for thrilling or arresting moments.

Testament of Youth (2014)

Directed by: James Kent
Country: UK

Movie Review: “Testament of Youth” is a biographical drama based on the World War I memoir by the English writer and pacifist, Vera Brittain, played here with perseverance by Alicia Vikander, the one who gained our attention some weeks ago as Ava, the robot, in the commendable sci-fi “Ex Machina”. Despite Vikander’s endeavor to get everything right, properly shaping Vera’s personality, the drama, adapted by Juliette Towhidi and directed by James Kent, never took the bull by the horns, conveying the sensation that much better should have been done. I had difficulty finding a strong emotional link with the main character. Even completely identifying and understanding her condition, I simply resigned myself to her grief in a state of indifference. Both director and screenwriter share responsibilities in the case, first because the awkward camera work didn’t win me over, and second because the story lingers more than it should in certain scenes and details, which once absorbed, should have progressed in a more straightforward way. Almost every affective connection created between the viewer and the character, at a certain point, is dissolved in the following scene, time when a new effort is required to reestablish the connection. The viewers should be spared to these relapses to avoid falling into monotony. The misty cinematography by Rob Harden, who had showed aptitude in “Ex Machina” and “Boy A”, was perfectly suitable for the time and place, and his sporadic unfocused images didn’t bother me at all. In the end, “Testament of Youth” is not so strong when intersects the anguish of loss in wartime with the pacifism that, in a noble way, started gaining life. Obviously, this point of view only applies to the film itself and not to the respectful principles and deeds of Vera Brittain.

Slow West (2015)

Directed by: John Maclean
Country: UK / New Zealand

Movie Review: “Slow West” represents an auspicious debut for writer-director John Maclean who incorporates old and modern formulas to turn this western into an eventful 19th century’s odyssey that brings a madly-in-love 16-year-old Scottish boy to the American West, looking for his true love. Jay Cavendish (Kodi Smit-McPhee) is the boy in question and the girl he’s trying to find is Rose Ross (Caren Pistorius). What Jay doesn’t know is that Rose is wanted dead or alive, a situation that drives several bounty hunters to the region, eager to put their hands on the $2000 reward. Fortunately, Jay won’t do this trip alone, counting with the gun skills of a lonely drifter, Silas Selleck (Michael Fassbender), the narrator of the story, who offers himself to protect him from hunters, desperados, and Indians. Among the bad-asses, one is particularly feared – Payne (Ben Mendelsohn), a sly wolf who made a pretty funny appearance; with a cigar between his lips and covered in a big fur coat, he asked Silas in the middle of the woods: ‘may I enter?’. Along the journey, Jay and his secretive pal will come across good and bad people, but among all the situations, two of them are definitely good: the first was when Jay was forced to shoot down an intimidating immigrant mother; the second happened when during a furtive Indian attack, he avoids an arrow from hitting his face in an exceptional reflex. Gorgeous landscapes accommodate these precipitate encounters, which circumstantially are suspended by flashbacks of the protagonists’ past. Jay’s sense of purity, endless passion, and astute observations are what propel us being fond of him. As for Mr. Maclean, who managed to follow his own orientation whenever it was justified, praise should be given to him for cooking the plot with homogeneity and no pressure, and for setting up a memorable climax built on a rousing final shootout.

Far From The Madding Crowd (2015)

Directed by: Thomas Vinterberg
Country: UK / USA

Movie Review: Carey Mulligan gives a resplendent performance in “Far From The Madding Crowd”, the newest adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s novel of the same name, this time written by David Nicholls and directed by the Danish Thomas Vinterberg (“The Celebration”, “The Hunt”). This same novel had been adapted to the big screen for several times, with the John Schlesinger’s 1967 version, starring Julie Christie, Alan Bates, Terrence Stamp, and Peter Finch, being the most successful one. Vinterberg’s modern adaptation was set with dignity, bestowing the required variations in mood, tenderness, and passion without falling in tear-jerking schemes. I have to give him the merit for maintaining high levels of interest and motivation in the story, from start to finish. With the rustic visuals of Victorian England’s countryside as background, Bathsheba Everdene (Mulligan), a beautiful, progressive, and independent woman, refuses to get married with her aunt’s neighbor, the young shepherd, Gabriel Oak (Mathias Schoenaerts), even nurturing some affection for him. All of a sudden, the latter falls into ruin and moves to a contiguous land, exactly where Bathsheba inherited the best farm from an uncle. After meeting again, they become the closest friends and the loyal Gabriel agrees to work for her. His quietness doesn’t conceal his passion, however, his patient heart is crushed when two other suitors start to court Miss Everdene. One is a nervously obsessive wealthy man called Boldwood (Michael Sheen), the other is the broken yet dauntless Sergeant Troy (Tom Sturridge), a master in swordsmanship whose bitterness thickens day by day since he was far from his true love, Fanny Robbin (Juno Temple). Uninventive but charming, this opportune, nice-looking film adds appreciable value to the uncertain romantic dramas that keep arriving in theaters.

Electricity (2014)

Directed by: Bryn Higgins
Country: UK

Movie Review: With a script by Joe Fisher from Ray Robinson’s novel of the same title, “Electricity”, is the second feature length film, out of his habitual TV scope, from British director and producer, Bryn Higgins (“Unconditional Love”). It stars the fashion model Agyness Deyn as Lily O’Connor, an epileptic woman who obsessively starts searching for her long-gone brother, Mikey, with whom she had a very special bond in their childhood, before they were separated due to family predicaments. Now that her disdainful mother is dead, a small inheritance is available to be shared. The resolute Lily leaves the casino where she works and moves to London with just a couple clues about Mikey’s whereabouts. In her staying, good and bad experiences will occur, apart from the imminent seizures that so many times frustrate her intentions. While some of the characters she comes across are like angels descending from the sky to give her a hand on the right time, some others are capable of ruining the day. Lily is clearly fed up of medication routines, failed therapies, and vague conclusions about her health state and even the bruises all over her body are no more embarrassments. A few stumbles in the script don’t disarm the mildly paced drama, an investigative London ride that oscillates from stressful to inconsolable to heartwarming. Cinematographer, Si Bell, guarantees rich visual textures, well supported by a catchy camera work that is particularly noteworthy during Lily’s seizures. The soundtrack was thoroughly selected and adjusts perfectly to the circumstances. Agyness Deyn also deserves some words of incentive since her performance was valid enough to justify what would be a questionable choice at a first glance. “Electricity” is flawed but copiously dignified to deserve a peek.

Ex Machina (2015)

Directed by: Alex Garland
Country: UK

Movie Review: Novelist-turned-director, Alex Garland, has a fantastic debut with “Ex Machina”, an unfussy offbeat sci-fi thriller whose special effects, in its simple and efficacious forms, are much more attractive than the mostly high-budgeted films within the same genre. Mr. Garland categorically solidifies his tendency for inventive screenwriting, and with this penetrating robotic adventure overcomes his past written compositions, such as “28 Days Later” “Dredd”, “Never Let Me Go” and “Sunshine”. The story brings a dedicated young programmer, Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson), to an isolated house in the mountains (only accessible by helicopter) where he’s going to evaluate an imprisoned, sophisticated android, Ava (Alicia Vikander), which according to its creator, is capable to feel and respond to real emotions. The creator and host, Nathan (Oscar Isaac), a muscle builder with increasing alcohol problems, built up a dwelling house whose high security is vulnerable to occasional power outages. The super advanced Ava takes advantage of these few minutes to manipulate the fascinated Caleb and set him against the apparently not so artless inventor. What does she intend to? At this point, everything is shrouded in a disquieting enigma, and even if the story can be partly predictable in its conclusions (it was for me), the film works well, flowing at a steady pace and extracting a disturbing chilliness from each action. Quietly, it gets into your mind, producing cold sweats with its emotionless stabs, and then sliding into your senses with an ending that confronts freedom and claustrophobia. Super performances and a praiseworthy direction, were key to turning “Ex Machina” into an accomplished work. The sensual robots bestow a nice touch.

Set Fire to the Stars (2014)

Directed by: Andy Goddard
Country: UK

Movie Review: Co-written by the actor Celyn Jones and the debutant director Andy Goddard, the British drama “Set Fire to the Stars” is a semi-biographical work that showcases the special relationship between the famous Welsh poet Dylan Thomas (Celyn Jones) and his big admirer, the American poetry professor John Malcolm Brinnin (Elijah Wood), who also aspired to become a poet and brought Dylan to the US for the first time in 1955. With galloping jazz tunes hovering the attractive black-and-white picture, the film was built from Brinnin’s perspective, depicting the efforts he made to save his hero from an inveterate bohemia and heavy alcoholism. Dylan reveals to be an insecure soul whose wife and starving children keep waiting for him to return home. Acting impulsively and characterized by bluntness in manners, everything can happen when he’s around - from public shame (more frequent) to brilliant interventions. Basically, the interest of the film relies on what the intoxicated Dylan will do next, which might determine the course of the story. The frames are nicely composed but the storytelling is not always expeditious, and on several occasions our struggle to keep focused is as hard as the mission of the hopeless John in trying to avoid that New York ‘kills’ his friend. Notwithstanding, and despite the mentioned quibbles, “Set Fire to the Stars” can give us a good idea of the importance of this particular phase in the protagonists’ lives. Love and hate, plus admiration and frustration, seem to walk hand in hand here. We don’t really come across with the genius of Dylan’s poetry but rather with the personality of the poet itself. The same is valid for the not so stimulating John Brinnin.

Black Sea (2014)

Directed by: Kevin Macdonald
Country: UK / Russia / USA

Movie Review: Scottish film director, Kevin Macdonald, knows how to handle a thriller, gathering all the possible familiar aspects inherent to a submarine thriller. “Black Sea” was still capable to catch my attention by adding factors like greediness, frustration, xenophobia and perseverance to a risky underwater mission outlined with routine moments of tension and claustrophobia. Jude Law plays Robertson, an offended submarine captain who got fired from the salvage company he had been working so hard for eleven years. Disappointed and physically detached from his wife and 12 year-old son who were both doing fine without him, Robertson seemed condemned to drink in pubs with depressed friends in the same conditions as he was. However, when a financed operation to find a WWII German U-boat lying in the bottom of the sea, supposedly full of gold, is put in his hands, he didn’t hesitate to fully accept it. For that, he will have to gather a crew of twelve men, half British half Russian, since the old submarine to use is from Russian origin. A senseless American called Daniels, connected to the investor, is also joining them in the risky treasure hunt whose accidents, threats, crazy maneuvers and dives into the unknown, are just some occurrences to expect. A substantial part of the tension comes from the men who were divided by country. Apart from Robertson, there’s a particularly interesting character that stands out for his sly behavior and defiant posture; Frazer is his name, a mad diver, superbly performed by Ben Mendelsohn. The adventure grows pretty exciting in the last thirty minutes and the finale, if not totally unexpected, did have a good impact on me.

71 (2014)

Directed by: Yann Demange
Country: UK

Movie Review: With experience in TV series since 2007, the French-born director raised in the UK, Yann Demange, gives us sufficient motives to expect great deeds in the future, since his first feature, “’71”, is a breathtaking political action thriller, skillfully shot, competently structured, and filled with creepy tense moments. The story, set in Dublin, 1971, follows the 20-year-old private soldier, Gary Hook (Jack O’Connell), member of a Derbyshire security squad assigned to patrol the rioting streets that host two enemy political factions during the time of ethno-nationalist conflicts known as ‘The Troubles’. During a turmoil involving the crowd, Hook is forced to run after a young boy who stole a gun from one of his squad mates. Separated from his unit, he gets caught by merciless separatists, managing to escape death in a miraculous way. Severely wound and marked to die by the radicals, he has no other choice than follow his intuitions and trust a few local strangers, to survive in the perilous narrow streets of the city. Demange reveals a tremendous ability to deal with a plot that leaves no ambiguities, creating a nightmarish adventure, which was carried out with confidence, stirring motion and objectivity. Its appalling images strike us with brutal actions and realistic scenarios, brought into existence by efficacious handheld camera movements that increase the chaotic atmosphere lived, as well as the fear and pain endured by the brave soldier impersonated by Jack O’Connell. This is the same O’Connell who, earlier this year, left me well impressed in “Starred Up”. This is a fantastic debut from Yann Demange who was granted with a prestigious special mention from the ecumenical jury at Berlin.