Evil Lives Here.

Film: Red Riding Trilogy (In the Year of Our Lord 1974; 1980; 1983)
Year: 2009
Director: Julian Jarrold (1974), James Marsh (1980), Anand Tucker (1983)
Written by: Tony Grisoni
Starring: Andrew Garfield, Rebecca Hall, David Morrissey, Paddy Considine, Robert Sheehan, Peter Mullan, Warren Clarke, Jim Carter, Eddie Marsan, Sean Harris, Maxine Peake, Sean Bean.
Running time: 295 min.

I've always somewhat disliked television, but what I dislike even more are made-for-TV films. They usually don't have much going for them, have no stylistic intentions whatsoever and employ a who's who of B-grade actors. All too often have I likened completely average movies with a huge amount of potential to the made-for-TV area, or used it as a whipping stick of some sort. However, there was a trilogy of movies made for British televisions in 2009 which was good enough to get a theatrical release in America in 2010. It was also good enough to change my attitude towards the television movies I so disliked before. The Red Riding trilogy, based upon David Peace's quartet of books looking at a series of murder and crime in Yorkshire, is one heck of a trilogy, ranking up there with the best. In fact, you wouldn't even be able to tell that this started out as a television project, because of the high-calibre of actors and well-informed production and stylistic values.

16 Days of Birthday, Day 4: My Actress Idols

Being around movies all the time, I tend to look up at a lot of actresses as role models. Not the Disney types of actresses that us young adults are all supposed to aspire to be...no. It's the real kinds of actresses who are out there kicking Hollywood's butt, and looking awesome while doing it. Here's my ultra cool list of some of my favourite actress role-models:

Jennifer Lawrence is someone who I think is completely awesome. Not only did her career sky-rocket in 2010 thanks to her gutsy performance in much acclaimed indie Winter's Bone, she is practically now one of Hollywood's most-wanted actresses. And you know, she still seems to be a completely normal girl. Completely normal.

Vera Farmiga has slipped off the radar a bit of late, but I sure am looking forward to seeing her directorial debut, Higher Ground. I just love Vera, and I can't really pinpoint on the exact reason why. But she's one cool chick.

Anne Hathaway has been my idol ever since I watched Brokeback Mountain back in 2006. She radiates all kinds of happiness it's just ridiculous. Oh, and who remembers that huge Disney princess phase she had back in the day? Yeah...that's a distant memory.

Y'all know that I quite like Rebecca Hall, the rather tall British actress who always seems to be in the right movies. Seriously, I will watch anything that she stars in. Even though she's so amazing that I want to cry.

I think I just wish I was Saoirse Ronan. She's one of those rare teenage actresses who has all the talent of an actor who has been in the profession for a few decades. Seriously, if I was an eighth of how awesome she is then I would be such a happy panda.

As you're all probably well aware, Amy Adams is my favourite actress, and I think she's an amazing person, too. Sure, there have been some mishaps in her career (ah, Leap Year, anyone?). But she's still one of the bubbliest and most vibrant actresses out there, who continuously shies away from the spotlight.

Ever since I watched The Disappearance of Alice Creed, I've been in love with Gemma Arterton. In that movie, I thought she was incredibly gutsy, and she looked so real, unlike any of those other stick-thin actresses. Also, watching Tamara Drewe fuelled my love for her a bit more. Seriously, the girl is amazing!

Who doesn't love Natalie Portman? I think she's such a cutie pie, and she seems to have a heart of gold. Plus, her laugh is crazy. Not to mention that she shaved off her hair for a movie role. And learned how to do ballet for a movie role. Dedication.

Emma Stone is probably the actress that I look up to the most. First of all, she made a powerpoint to convince her parents that she should be an actress. Look where that got her. Piles of crappy movies, but she always remained the best thing about them. And along comes Easy A, the film where she showed us all that she could indeed carry a comedy by herself, and be naturally funny. She's such a cute person, too. Let's just hope the sudden boom her career is having won't go to her head...

So, do you have any actress idols?

5 Reasons Why I Love Rebecca Hall

I watched Dorian Gray today for only one reason: it has Rebecca Hall in it. For many people, the name Rebecca Hall isn't familiar. But I can guarantee you that she has been in at least one movie you've seen. Unless you completely missed The Prestige or The Town in which case you are totally missing out on something special.

Anyway, Rebecca Hall is one of my most favourite actresses. I just think she's the cat's pyjamas. And like last week's entry Cillian Murphy, Hall is severely underrated. Which is probably why I love her so much.

1. Her performance in The Town.

The Town is largely an ensemble piece featuring some brilliant performances across the board, especially from the Oscar nominated Jeremy Renner. Sure, Renner has a stand-out performance, Blake Lively was particularly interesting with her different sort of role and Pete Postlethwaite was terrifying in his few short scenes. But the person I loved the most out of all of them was my girl Rebecca Hall. She didn't have a very flashy role, but she was quietly compelling and proved that she was a very good leading lady. Now, let's all hope that after this movie she'll get more great offers like this, because, after all, she is so awesome.

2. She's a stage actress.

There's something about a stage actress which I really like. I don't know what it is, but acting on stage takes a hell of a lot of talent, considering the whole thing gets done in one night. Rebecca has been in a lot of stage productions in her career, particularly because her father is a renowned stage director. Which is cool, because it certainly does sound like she's achieved a lot on the stage, and she's also managed to juggle a good film career into that.

3. She's a very natural looking actress.

You know how there are some actresses who always look like actresses - all glossy with their hair looking perfect and make-up smothered over them? When I look at Rebecca, she's always struck me as a naturally beautiful girl. To be honest, she is very plain, but she's so well defined, I'm actually quite jealous of her. She's quite statuesque, she has quite a large mouth, her eyes are a beautiful brown and her hair is so nice and relaxed. I wouldn't say that she looks like a 'movie star', but just a nice, plain actress.

4. Her body of work is goooooooood.

Rebecca hasn't starred in a lot, but as I've said, it's hard to miss a movie with her in it, because she's been in some good ones. She started her film career with Brit comedy Starter for 10, which also starred other brilliant Brits James McAvoy and Alice Eve. In that same year she went straight to the top with a supporting role in Christopher Nolan's The Prestige. And you all know how amazing Chris Nolan is, so this role was pretty huge for her. Two years later she scored a Golden Globe nomination for her leading role in Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona. Even though I didn't much like the film, this is where I completely fell in love with her. Following that was Frost/Nixon, Dorian Gray and also Red Riding, which got her a BAFTA for Best Supporting Actress. Of course, 2010 brought The Town, and also the lovely indie comedy Please Give, where she plays one of the nicest characters on Earth. And rounding out her boomer career (for the time being) is Everything Must Go, co-starring Will Ferrell. Seriously, you have no reason not to watch her. It's not like her films are hard to find, or anything.

5. I'm sure she radiates niceness.

Seriously, every time I see her, she looks like she could be the kindest person ever. I was just watching some interviews with her, and she seems like she's a lovely person, so sweet and so relaxed. Her smile probably has enough wattage to light up Dannevirke. This could just be me comparing her to her lovely character in Please Give (who is an incredibly selfless person, someone who I envy greatly), but I find it impossible not to love her. She's a gorgeous, genuine actress, who spreads happiness around all of her movies. My goodness, I love her.

Please tell me I am not the only one who loves Rebecca Hall! Have you seen any of her movies? Were you impressed by her in any of them?

Manners vs. Manners: Please Give and Happythankyoumoreplease

On Saturday night, the world was supposed to end. Well, if it did at the time it was supposed to, I would have been mega-angry, because then I wouldn't have been able to finish watching Please Give (I would actually be dead...or whatever happens to you when the world ends). So anyway, as you probably know, the world didn't actually end, so I got to finish watching Please Give. After I finished watching that at about 11pm, I tried to get to sleep but I was scared that Harold Camping got the times wrong and the judgement day was near. And what do I do when I can't get to sleep? I usually toss and turn and throw pillows all around the room until my frustration makes me unconscious. But this night, as I waited for the judgement day, I watched Happythankyoumoreplease until 1am, like the little 'insomniac' I am.

Now I didn't intend to watch two movies on the same night that both have 'please', a word which I learned of when I watched Barney all those years ago. I also didn't intend to watch two films which are at the same level of 'indie' in them. So let's have a little face-off between the two:

The cast

Please Give has the always excellent Catherine Keener playing a mother who feels the need to save the world; Oliver Platt as her long suffering husband who takes a shine to his neighbour; Rebecca Hall as a breast cancer radiology technician who spends her time looking after her grandmother and sometimes her sister; Amanda Peet as an over-tanned cosmetologist who's portrayed as cold and heartless; Ann Guilbert as the old grandmother living next door to Keener and Platt, who closes herself off from the world and proceeds to make everyone's life miserable; and Sarah Steele as Keener and Platt's teenage daughter with skin problems and all over confidence problems, with a slight hatred towards her mother's kindness.

Happythankyoumoreplease stars Josh Radnor, also the writer and director of the film, who is a down-on-his-luck writer who gets stuck with a foster child who changes his life; Kate Mara as Radnor's love interest, a pretty waitress with aspirations of a singing career; Malin Akerman as Radnor's friend who suffers from Alopecia, and believes the fact that she has no hair is the reason why she hasn't found love; Zoe Kazan as Radnor's cousin Mary Catherine, an artist who doesn't know whether to leave New York with her boyfriend (Pablo Shreiber); and Richard Jenkins in a small role as the man who decides that Radnor's novel may not be good enough.

The premise

Please Give is about a woman, Kate, who sells furniture with her husband and likes to give away her money to homeless people in the streets of New York. They buy the apartment adjacent to theirs so they can expand their house, but they have to wait for the elderly and cranky woman Andra to die before they can do that. As they wait, Kate and Alex, along with their teenage daughter Abby, get to know Andra's two granddaughters, Rebecca, a kind and generous woman who is too busy to have anything distract her, and Mary, a cynical and often harsh woman who has an affair with Alex. Meanwhile, Kate decides to try and erase her guilt of being so well-off that she tries to volunteer for certain groups, which usually end in disaster.

Happythankyoumoreplease centres around a writer, Sam, who is hoping that his novel will get picked up by a major publishing house, but he finds a foster child alone on a train and feels compelled to help him. This child ends up ruining his chances of getting his book published, but he decides to look after him anyway. Sam ends up meeting, and instantly falling for, a waitress named Mississippi, who wants to make her big break in singing in New York. The film also focuses on Sam's cousin Mary Catherine and her boyfriend Charlie, who have opposing views on living in New York, and also Sam's ill friend Annie, who is desperately looking for love in all of the wrong places.

Pros

Please Give is really cleverly written by Nicole Holofcener. She makes everything realistic and never allows her characters to become overly neurotic, as they could have been. The characters that she created, though, are brilliant. Especially the dynamic between Kate and Rebecca. Kate is a woman who feels the need to be generous and kind, but only out of guilt. Rebecca, however, seems like she might be taking a leaf out of Kate's book, but instead, she is kind and generous by default. This also spills over into the relationship between Rebecca and Mary, who are two very different people, and it just shows how Rebecca can cope with it all. It's a beautiful character piece which has some fantastic ideas on relationships. The cast really deliver, too, with a surprising Amanda Peet stealing the show as the cold-hearted sister.

Happythankyoumoreplease is a very nice comedy with some really sweet moments within it. The performances are all great, especially the one from Kate Mara. She will be a big star if she continues to choose brilliant lively roles like this one, and also if she continues to sing, as well. Malin Akerman is also lively without a single piece of hair. I really enjoyed Zoe Kazan as well, but that's because I have been continually impressed with her rise to fame. It has an interesting look on three different stages of love (trying to find it trying to hold onto it, and just coming into it) and also a nice take on the 'adoption tale', where one man helps out someone who is less fortunate.

Cons

There aren't that many cons for Please Give. There were some slight niggles in the movie and I felt that Kate's guilt was never properly explored, and I was also disappointed with the fact that Alex and Mary's relationship was never revealed, even though it had the potential to be. But I guess that's just trying to convey the film's main point...guilt.

Happythankyoumoreplease is lacking the necessary spark it needs to get it going, and it unfortunately wavers under a large amount of dullness and often succumbs to predictability. Also, the relationship between Sam and Mississippi is strangely done, as one minute, Sam is wildly in love with Mississippi, but the next, the tables have turned. I feel there isn't much of an explanation to this and it makes their story have less potential than the others.

Final word

Please Give is a film not to be missed. It's sharply acted, written and directed, with a great indie vibe.

What I got:

Happythankyoumoreplease is a very nice comedy of sorts let down by some major problems in the script, but Josh Radnor is on to a good start with his writing/directing career.

What I got:

Due to technical difficulties...

...my review of The Woman in the Window for tonight's instalment to the Classic Movie Marathon will have to be postponed. It's a complicated story, really. The version I have of the movie is a different zone to what we have here in NZ, therefore I can't play it on my laptop. So I brought out my trusty old portable DVD player to watch it on, but it turns out that I can't actually hear the movie on that. My only other option is to watch it in the lounge on the TV, but since my Dad isn't the movie type of person, I'll have to wait until tomorrow when he's at work before I can have the TV all to myself. So the schedule is pushed back a day, mainly coz I'm having a little trouble keeping up with these movies...I'm sadly more happy rewatching movies I've already seen fifty times before coz I just can't think straight.

In place of tonight's review, I'll just give you a photo of Jeremy Renner. Because he is my new nerd obsession at the moment. After all, he's in the new Bourne movie, bitches!

And while we're on the subject of Jeremy...here's a cute pic of he and Jon Hamm...

And on the subject of Jon, here's a pic of he and the beautiful Rebecca Hall...

And for no reason at all, just the fact that I watched the marvellous The Ghost Writer again a couple of nights back, here's an interesting premiere photo of stars Ewan McGregor, Olivia Williams, and Pierce Brosnan. I swear, Olivia Williams' performance in this movie was the best (male or female) performance of 2010. I have absolutely no doubt about that.

Ha, technical difficulties have never turned out to be so good looking.

My Top 10 Favourite (modern) Actresses

Of course, yesterday I made a list of my favourite actors. Today, as promised, I am going to list my favourite actresses. So, without further ado (I don't even know what that means), here is my list of favourite women in the movies:

Honorable mentions: Kate Winslet, Carey Mulligan, Zooey Deschanel, Natalie Portman, Mila Kunis, Jennifer Lawrence, Michelle Williams, Meryl Streep, Chloe Moretz, Carrie-Anne Moss, Michelle Monaghan, Abbie Cornish, Ellen Page, Saoirse Ronan.


10. Rachel McAdams (in Morning Glory)

Probably not the most predictable choice, but I have been a long time fan of the lovely Rachel McAdams. She totally owned as high school bitch-of-all-bitches Regina George in Mean Girls, even though she was in her late 20s when she took the role. And no, she's not just my favourite actress coz she's in that really 'sweet' movie The Notebook. As time has gone on, Rachel has been outstanding in such films as The Time Traveller's Wife, Morning Glory, Sherlock Holmes, Red Eye, State of Play and Wedding Crashers. By the looks of her upcoming films, she's going to hit it really big in the future.
Favourite performance: Mean Girls
Favourite film: Mean Girls

9. Emma Stone (in Zombieland)

She's still a star on the rise, but Emma Stone has never failed to amaze me. Before her star turn in Easy A, she was the best thing about bad movies, like The House Bunny and Ghosts of Girlfriends Past. In 2009, she managed to star in a couple of good movies - Paper Man and Zombieland - and be completely astounding. But hey, it all comes down to her first lead role in Easy A, where she makes that movie even better than it is. I can't wait to see her dramatic turn in The Help and her with Andrew Garfield in The Amazing Spider-Man.
Favourite performance: Easy A
Favourite film: Zombieland

8. Marion Cotillard (in Public Enemies)

Whoever has seen La Vie En Rose will probably agree...Marion Cotillard is one damn good actress. I don't know how she did it, but role just fit her like a glove. Since that star turn she's been taking many supporting roles, all of which she has been scene-stealing in. She was perfect in Public Enemies as Johnny Depp's girlfriend. I don't even know how Penelope Cruz got nominated for an Oscar for Nine, Marion was no doubt the stand out in that. And in Inception, Marion performed probably the best out of that amazing ensemble cast. Anything she does, I'll be there.
Favourite performance: La Vie En Rose
Favourite film: Inception

7. Olivia Williams (in The Ghost Writer)

Olivia Williams is quite a new entry, but ever since I saw her performance in The Ghost Writer, I've become more and more interested in her body of work. British actresses always seem to do amazing things on screen, and none of them more so than Olivia. She seems effortlessly resigned to her work, and the fact that she is largely underrated makes me like her even more, too.
Favourite performance: The Ghost Writer
Favourite film: An Education

6. Julianne Moore (in The Hours)

Who doesn't love Julianne Moore? She seems like such a cool person. And she's a fantastic actress. Her resume is proof of that. But how is it that she can keep starring in all these great films with great performances and not getting an Oscar for it? It's beyond me. Her appearances in the recent A Single Man and The Kids Are All Right should have gotten her an Oscar nomination, but sadly not so. However, I will always remember her for her beautiful performance in The Hours.
Favourite performance: The Hours
Favourite film: A Single Man

5. Anne Hathaway (in The Devil Wears Prada)

Ever since I first saw Brokeback Mountain, I've been in love with Anne Hathaway, and have worked my way through her entire resume. She's had her highs and her lows (during that princess phase of hers), but since she's all grown up she's really come into her own; she's feisty, sweet and courageous. If her Oscar nominated performance in Rachel Getting Married is anything to go by, Anne may just become one of the greater actresses of our future. Well, at least I hope she does.
Favourite performance: Rachel Getting Married
Favourite film: The Devil Wears Prada

4. Cate Blanchett (in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button)

Again, who doesn't love Cate Blanchett? Coz if you don't, you ought to leave. Now. She's so brilliant. Every movie she is in, even if it is as dull as Robin Hood, she is amazing in. You know if you're going to watch a Cate film there is a large chance that it will be great. Many of my favourite memories of Cate come from her luminous beauty on display in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and The Aviator, the later getting her a much deserved Oscar. How is it that she is so great? I will never know.
Favourite performance: The Aviator
Favourite film: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

3. Rebecca Hall (in The Town)

If you've never heard of Rebecca Hall, then shame on you. But I can understand if you haven't. She just fades into the background for most people. However, every time I see a movie with her in it, I am so impressed. She is such a great actress. Greater than people give her credit for. She did some amazing stuff in the lacklustre Vicky Cristina Barcelona (which earned her a Golden Globe nomination), The Prestige for Master Nolan, and recently The Town, where she brings a fresh take on an otherwise flat love interest. Rebecca Hall is just awesome. And really pretty, too.

Favourite performance: The Town

Favourite film: The Prestige



2. Vera Farmiga (in Up in the Air)

Anything that says Vera Farmiga and I'm in. She's such a chill person. And such a marvellous actress. Sure, she's had her highs and lows, but her resume shows diversity and a particular love towards those indie films. I'm a sucker for them. She's probably best known for her Oscar nominated turn in Up in the Air, and that's fair enough. She's absolutely amazing in that. Hell, she was even good in Orphan, which was hated by everyone else but me (hey, don't judge, I thought it was clever). I can't wait to see her directorial debut in Higher Ground. I hope she can direct as well as she can act.
Favourite performance: Up in the Air
Favourite film: The Departed 


1. Amy Adams (in Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day)

Amy Adams must be the sweetest person alive. Every time I see her all I can picture are unicorns dancing over rainbows made out of marshmallows...in short, she makes me really happy. Not to mention she's been nominated for an Oscar three times. And she could have gotten a fourth nomination for playing a princess in a Disney movie. I kid you not, her performance in Enchanted is one of the best I have ever seen. In fact, any performance of hers is great. I personally think she was better than Melissa Leo in The Fighter. And at least she wouldn't have said a naughty word in her acceptance speech.
Favourite performance: Enchanted
Favourite film: Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day

Righty-ho...next week I'm gonna go all old-school on you and reveal my ten favourite actors and actresses from the classics. Any objections to this list?

DVD--The Town

or: Cops and robbers.

One word to sum it up: Nice.

The Town has such a pretty cast. Ben Affleck as an actor and a director is pretty. One of my most favourite actresses Rebecca Hall is pretty. Blake Lively is pretty. Jon Hamm is beyond pretty. And Jeremy Renner, well, what can I say...I become more interested in this man with every role he takes. So they all come together, with the brilliant Pete Postlethwaite (RIP) in another small but scene stealing role, and make a movie about bank robbers with the cops on their tails. Methoughts it would be pretty awesome. Methinks The Town was actually a bloody awesome movie.

One may go into this film expecting a gritty action thriller, and you will get exactly that, but you will also get a nice romance as well. The romantic duo come in the form of Doug MacRay (Ben Affleck) and Claire Keesey (Rebecca Hall). She is an innocent bank manager who lives in Charlestown, and has just had her bank robbed. He, unbeknownst to her, is a bank robber and the one who robbed her bank. They form an unlikely relationship, which endangers the world he is currently in. His friend and fellow robber, James 'Jem' Coughlin (Jeremy Renner) believes that she might screw things up for his group of robbers and gets increasingly worried about what she told the FBI and that she may be able to identify them. It's not long before Adam Frawley (Jon Hamm), the head of FBI's investigation, has found a link to this group, and they start to realize that death or prison are their only ways out of Charlestown.

This is a story often told: a girl and a guy falling in love even though one half is shrouded in secrecy, a man trying to make a break from his past life and make a new one, and the one last job which changes everything. It's not new material, but there is something about The Town which is really special. I can't quite put my finger on it, but this movie was really well done. Ben Affleck may have had his highs and lows as an actor, but with this, his follow up to the much acclaimed Gone Baby Gone, he shows that he is a very capable writer and director. Almost too capable, if anything. Here he captures the right atmosphere, making a dark surrounding for dark characters all praying for some light, but never quite reaching it because of their surroundings pulling them back in.

As well as being an insightful drama which looks into the lives of criminals effortlessly well, The Town also succeeds at being an action film, too. There are a few great chases and sequences within the film which are done with blockbuster flair. I like how this movie has a deft blend of genres: drama, romance and action. It never gets tired, and is always interesting. From a girly perspective, I really liked the romance in this film, since they weren't trying too hard to capitalize that. It just shows that a romantic story can be good when you don't try too hard. Deep down, though, this is a mans movie, which is okay for the girls, too. Now why wasn't this nominated for more than one Oscar?!

The characters and performances within the film are brilliant. Affleck, who didn't stop at writing and directing duties, is superb in the leading role, but it's really his supporting stars who shine. Hopefully Rebecca Hall will become better known for her role in this: she was amazing (as always) and so sweet, I couldn't help but feel she was a stand out. Jon Hamm, why you so sexy? He was good, too. Blake Lively was beyond great in this. I really never knew how far she'd be able to go as an actress, and she really pushed her limits here. Even though her role was one which could have easily been omitted, she made the most of her opportunity. Pete Postlethwaite, quite frankly, terrified me as Fergie. How is it that he could just steal the show in a few short scenes? He was simply such a great character actor, and really showed that here, in one of his last films. However, the man who scored The Town's only Oscar nomination was Jeremy Renner, who was magnificent here. Following on from his superb nominated performance in last years The Hurt Locker, Renner takes on another character who can't live with out violence. His presence is violent and scary, but there is still enough of a story in the man to make you like him. Let's just hope that Renner keeps up the roll he's been on of late, because I just can't seem to get enough of him.

THE VERDICT: The Town may not have the most original story, but the way it is made and performed is a brilliant example of fine filmmaking. Ben Affleck should just keep writing and directing movies.

What I hoped for:

What I got: