The result is a mixed cocktail of blood and style that is both inebriating and toxic.Īfter some dizzyingly edited pre-credits scenes set the tone of the film (nauseatingly violent and heavily noir inflected), a whiplash credits sequence – all 70’s cool and throttling guitar – sets an impossibly high bar that the film itself has a hard time following. Cribbing liberally from film noir, 70’s exploitation, Robert Rodriguez’s anti-heroes of Sin City, and Tarantino’s talky scenes intercut with shocking violence, Kanako is drenched in even more sin and far less redemption than its forebears. The brutal Japanese thriller The World of Kanako seeks to shock and destroy with its stylish pastiche of American grindhouse trends. Posted in Reviews, TIFF and tagged Bong Joon-ho, Haemoo, Review, TIFF on Septemby glenonfilm. After the crew of the Junjiho is given their share of the earnings and brought into the fold by their captain, they hesitantly set about (more…) naïve, conniving, sex-starved) but are gradually fleshed out over the course of the film. Along for the ride is his ragtag crew, most of whom are given a single defining trait (i.e. Desperate and debt-riddled, he makes a last-ditch deal with the local heavy to transport illegal immigrants from China to South Korea. Kang, whose fishing boat, love life and luck have all run aground and seen better days. Kim Yun-seok portrays the down-on-his-luck Capt. Unpredictability married to strongly wrought (but sometimes broad) characters are Haemoo’s stock-in-trade, and they serve the story well by creating a lasting impression that lingers long after the final reel ends. The Korean actioner comes from first time director Sung Bo Shim, with producing and co-scripting duties handled by the celebrated Bong Joon-ho (of The Host and Snowpiercer fame). Haemoo (meaning “Sea Fog”, the film’s original working title) is a hybrid of sorts – a fast-paced, allegorical seafaring adventure that takes a turn towards the grim and gripping around halfway through. Posted in Reviews, TIFF and tagged Adam Wingard, Dan Stevens, Review, Simon Barrett, The Guest, TIFF on Septemby glenonfilm. Well ingratiated into the family, David soon stands up to bullies who have been terrorizing teenage son Luke (Brendan Meyer) in a raucous barroom confrontation that combines (more…) Father Spencer (Leland Orser) is hesitant at first, but soon finds in David a drinking buddy with a sympathetic ear to his failed career ambitions. Mother Laura (Sheila Kelley) is quick to warm to this surrogate son and invites him to stay in Kaleb’s old room. The film opens with David (British actor Dan Stevens of Downton Abbey) arriving at the Peterson homestead while claiming to be a fellow soldier of their late son Kaleb. Credit writer-director team Simon Barrett and Adam Wingard, as they strike gold in their third collaboration together (after 2010’s mumblecore horror pic A Horrible Way to Die and 2011’s clever slasher You’re Next) and transcend 80’s fetishism to create an entirely new beast that’ll have midnight audiences cheering. The Guest has so many familiar elements of VHS-era classics that it’s a wonder the end product feels as fresh and vibrant as it does. Posted in Reviews, TIFF and tagged Alex Russell, Cut Snake, Review, Sullivan Stapleton, TIFF, Tony Ayres on Septemby glenonfilm. Side-stepping ambiguity, Pommie’s motivations are quickly made clear from the ominous music overlaid atop scenes of him stalking parking lots and threatening the elderly. Taking place in 1974, the film opens with Pommie (Sullivan Stapleton, memorable in Animal Kingdom and perfunctory as a place holder in 300: Rise of an Empire) being released from prison and tracking down an old acquaintance. While idyllic and sun-drenched Melbourne is an inspired choice to set a period noir in, it’s the visuals alone that pop in this overblown melodrama. The shot is enticing and evocative, and makes promises that the disappointing Cut Snake is unable to keep. Smoke swirls and ebbs, backlit by the blinding afternoon sun. Cut Snake opens on a slow motion close-up of a cigarette heater pulsating as a drag is taken.
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