Shut Up and Play the Hits Review (Kirk Haviland)

Bloor Cinema Limited Engagement July 18th and 19th only

Shut up and Play the Hits (2012)

Starring LCD Soundsystem

Directed by Will Lovelace and Dylan Southern

So you’re in your mid-thirties and you decide it’s a great time to completely self-produce and release an album under the name LCD Soundsystem. It receives critical acclaim and now you’re making a “cover” band out of friends and other musicians to go out on tour with. Years later the band is about to make you and the band massive stars as it is on the cusp of a breakthrough on the charts, yet you decide it’s time to call it quits and end the band. Some call it masochism, others a crippling fear of success, but you are resolute. And you’re going to hold the funeral, a massive last concert, in the most historic venue in New York Madison Square Gardens. This is the premise behind Shut Up and Play the Hits.

The film is from the viewpoint of the man behind the whole phenomenon, James Murphy. We start after the show with Murphy waking after the festivities – his dog nearly steals the show here, and goes about the task of putting things in perspective. Murphy also has to deal with the logistical headaches of packing a massive amount of equipment away for good. This is interspersed with concert footage from the big night.  A third timeline is also introduced which serves as a narrative for the film, a recorded interview with famed reporter Chuck Klosterman. We follow Murphy through his day and his slow realization that it’s all over, leading to a powerful scene in the equipment storage room. All while we hear the prodding questions of Klosterman over the events of the day.

Seeing this for a second time after Hot Docs earlier this year, I found myself focusing in more on the musical performances and the nuances that Murphy shares on stage with his band mates. The Klosterman stuff comes off as cloying as ever and it still is downright grating in parts, but the music really carried me through more this time around because I knew that the Klosterman stuff was going to annoy me. The music sounds just as vibrant and resounding the second time around, maybe even more so.

The music alone makes Shut up and Play the Hits a worthy watch and I give it a recommend. What I highly recommend though, if you do have interest in seeing this, is checking it out on the big screen with the amazing sound system at the Hot Docs Bloor Cinema during its 2 DAY ONLY limited run (apparently it will also be playing across Canada on other select screens on those two days as well, check your listings) this week only, July 18th and 19th.

Till Next Time,

Movie Junkie TO

Make sure to keep up with what’s going on at Entertainment Maven by liking our Facebook page and having updates delivered right to your Facebook News Feed. It’s the only way to stay on top of all of our articles with the newest blockbusters and all the upcoming films and festivals in Toronto.

Follow me on twitter @moviejunkieto

Contact me at moviejunkieto@gmail.com

TKFF 2012 – Oldboy Review (Kirk Haviland)

Toronto Korean Film Festival 2012

Oldboy (2003)

Starring – Choi Min-sik, Yu Ji-tae, Kang Hye-jeong, Ji Dae-han and Kim Byeong-ok

Written by Hwang Jo-hyun, Lim Chun-hyeong, Lim Joon-hyung and Park Chan-wook (based on the Manga by Garon Tsuchiya and Nobuaki Minegishi)

Directed by Park Chan-wook

Now the undeniable creative leader of the Korean film movement of the last decade is by far and away Park Chan-wook. Starting with 2000’s JSA: Joint Security Area director Chan-wook has delivered diverse and ground-breaking films like the three films that make up the Vengeance Trilogy (Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy and Sympathy for Lady Vengeance), I’m a Cyborg, but that’s OK, and Thirst. Even though the Toronto Korean Film Festival wrapped over a week ago, I would like to use the background of the TKFF to talk about one of my favorite Korean films of all time, Old Boy.

Oh Dae-su (Min-sik) has always been a troublemaker. We open in a police station where Dae-su has been brought in on a drunken disorderly charge. After a series of funny outbursts Dae-su is sprung by his high school friend No Joo-hwan (Dae-han). It’s also Dae-Su’s daughter’s birthday and as Joo-Hwan talks to Dae-su’s wife explaining that he will get Dae-su home he suddenly disappears from a crowded street. Dae-su wakes in a locked room without any explanation. This cell will be his home for the next 15 years. We watch as Dae-su goes through his routine inside the cell, occasionally getting dosed with knockout gas so that his sheets can be changed and his hair cut, as he fights depression and starts training and preparing for whenever he may get released by punching a solid brick wall. One day 15 years later Dae-su wakes up on a roof of a building in the exact same spot where he was taken 15 years earlier. A suicidal man stands on the ledge of the building ready to jump until Dae-su forcefully makes him listen to his tale. After his confession the man states he wants to tell his tale which prompts Dae-su to stand up and promptly leave without another word. Dae-su wanders the streets until he ends up in front of a restaurant when a homeless man gives him a phone and wallet full of cash with the simple statement “Don’t bother asking me anything, I know nothing”. Once entering the restaurant Dae-su meets Mi-do (Hye-jeong), a young server/cook who looks to help him, and after receiving a phone call from his captor promptly passes out. Dae-su ends up at Mi-do’s home and she becomes his accomplice in piecing together the missing 15 years. Eventually Dae-su meets with Lee Woo-jin (Ji-Tae) and his accomplice Mr Han (Byeong-ok). Woo-jin gives him 5 days to discover who he is and why he imprisoned him for 15 years. The story continues as Dae-su unravels the mystery and moves along to one of the most shocking twists in film history.

Choi Min-sik has never been better than he is as Oh Dae-su. If he truly is Korea’s Robert DeNiro (he is) then Oh Dae-su is his Jake Lamotta or Travis Bickle, or maybe more appropriately the two of them combined. Min-sik is simply brilliant in one of the greatest performances I have seen on-screen. Kang Hye-jeong’s Mi-do is the reason Dae-su comes back to reality and does not simply fly off the handle in an infinite fit of rage. The rest of the performances are just as solid throughout. Wook-park once again proves his mastery in casting and storytelling. Oldboy has become iconic for its hallway fight sequence, where Oh Dae-su decimates a small army with only a hammer in hand, and its stunning final sequence. But it’s the smaller sequences like those in the jail cell and the ever cryptic ending that flesh out the story and really drive the impact home.

Oldboy is one of what I like to call an “all-time top tenner” as I love it so much it will seemingly always have a spot on my all-time top ten films list and in many other top ten lists as well. I cannot recommend Oldboy strongly enough, it is an absolute must see.

Till Next Time,

Movie Junkie TO

Make sure to keep up with what’s going on at Entertainment Maven by liking our Facebook page and having updates delivered right to your Facebook News Feed. It’s the only way to stay on top of all of our articles with the newest blockbusters and all the upcoming films and festivals in Toronto.

Follow me on twitter @moviejunkieto

Contact me at moviejunkieto@gmail.com

Fat Kid Rules the World Review (Kirk Haviland)

Projection Booth (Toronto)

Fat Kid Rules the World

Starring – Jacob Wysocki, Matt O’Leary, Dylan Arnold, Lili Simmons, and Billy Campbell

Written by Michael M.B. Galvin and Peter Speakman

Directed by Matthew Lillard

I must admit that I haven’t been the biggest fan of Matthew Lillard’s acting career. His career defining role may be as Shaggy in the Scooby Doo films (one good, one awful), but he has also impressed with his great turn as a punk rocker Stevo in SLC Punk and the iconic role of Stu in Scream.  Aside from that there hasn’t been a lot to commend, but perhaps that’s because he hadn’t found his true calling yet.

Fat Kid Rules the World introduces us to Troy Billings (Wysocki), the titular Fat Kid of the title, a depressed overweight teen who invisibly walks the halls at school as he’s ignored at every turn. Troy is depressed and lonely, especially after the passing of his mother, and decides to attempt stepping in front of a bus one day only to be saved by Marcus (O`Leary). Marcus is an unreliable musician who was expelled from the same high school Troy attends yet sneaks back in on a regular basis as he’s revered there because of his talent. Marcus convinces Troy that they need to start a new band, despite the fact that Troy can’t play, and starts him playing the drums. Meanwhile Troy’s home life is going no better as his father (Campbell) is an ex-military man who runs the lives of his sons as if they are enlisted men while  Troy’s brother Dayle (Arnold) constantly tries to impress his father for whatever affection he can get. Troy’s insulated world of school and computer role-playing games is blown open by Marcus’ world of punk rock and chaos. Troy becomes submerged in the music and the drums. Seeing his son finally showing interest in something prompts his father to go out and buy a drum kit and encourage his dream all while trying to reason with Marcus who he rightly sees as a destructive force.  At a concert Troy meets Isabel (Simmons) a beautiful punk girl, the type he only talks to in his elaborate fantasies, and the two strike up a friendship (no it’s not an awkward guy gets the girl type movie) but is left in the lurch as the unreliable Marcus leaves him behind in favor of a skanky girl. Troy continues coming out of his shell as the troubles with Marcus mount until the triumphant conclusion.

Fat Kid Rules the World is a little gem of a film. It’s the type of film you discover, maybe through accident, that you can’t wait to share with everyone you know. Wysocki is a true discovery as he deftly manages to portray Troy as a trusting, warm-hearted individual who is also a bag of raw untapped emotions just under the surface. Wysocki’s performance, the ever beating heart of the film, is truly engaging throughout the entire film. O’Leary does some fine work here as the troubled Marcus who can never seem to not self-destruct and apparently has no desire to stop. This may be the best thing Campbell has done in years, his performance as the protective father is pitch perfect. Lillard may have discovered his true calling here as he shows a deft hand behind the lens and shows a lot of talent as a storyteller, I’m really looking forward to what stories Lillard may have to tell us next.

Fat Kid does indeed Rule the World and can state it as a definite recommend. Fat Kid started its exclusive engagement at the Projection Booth Theater on Gerrard Street this weekend and continues all week long.

Till Next Time,

Movie Junkie TO

Make sure to keep up with what’s going on at Entertainment Maven by liking our Facebook page and having updates delivered right to your Facebook News Feed. It’s the only way to stay on top of all of our articles with the newest blockbusters and all the upcoming films and festivals in Toronto.

Follow me on twitter @moviejunkieto

Contact me at moviejunkieto@gmail.com

TAD Summer Screenings 2012 – V/H/S Review (Kirk Haviland)

Toronto After Dark Summer Screenings 2012

V/H/S

Directed by Adam Wingard, Ti West, David Bruckner, Glenn McQuaid, Joe Swanberg, and Radio Silence

Horror anthology films are usually a hit and miss affair. Classic anthologies like Creepshow and the more recent Trick ‘r Treat have proven that they can be made very well without missing a step, but those were both made with one person steering the ship. Usually multiple directors means that one or two parts fall short. These films work when the good considerably outweighs the bad, but does V/H/S fall into this category?

We start off with our wrapping story (Directed by Wingard) where we have a group of guys performing random acts of violence and destruction. After they finish destroying some homes, one of them talks about making some money by breaking into a house to steal a videotape. Upon breaking into the house the group discovers tons of tapes and a dead man sitting in a room full of televisions. As the team splits up to explore the house further, unsure of which tape they are there for, members of the group start sitting down in the room to watch the tapes. The first tape (Directed by Bruckner) is the story of a trio of guys equipped with a set of hidden camera glasses who manage to bring home the wrong girl. The second tape (Directed by Ti West) appears to be as simple vacation tape from a young couple, but things start to go awry after the appearance of an unknown visitor. Tape 3 (Glenn McQuaid) brings us the familiar horror set-up of a group of horny kids headed to the lake, until one tells the others of the grisly murders that occurred there previously. Tape 4 uses the wonders of Skype (Directed by Swanberg) to give us a scary tale of what appears to be a haunted apartment as a girl relays video of her surroundings to her boyfriend miles away via webcam. Now in-between the tape sequences things are occurring to our intrepid burglars and after tape 4 their story in concluded before moving on to our last tape. A group of friends looking for a friend of a friend’s Halloween party stumble into the wrong house and interrupt something they are never meant to see in our final tale of the film (Directed by Filmmaking conglomerate Radio Silence).

V/H/S has a lot more working for it than not. The wraparound story from Wingard really only starts working after they enter the house as the opening destruction sequences are tedious at best. Bruckner’s tale of a night out gone wrong is very effective with a couple of good lead performances. Ti West is a very talented filmmaker known for delivering intricately drawn out tales with killer finishing sequences, a process that does not transfer well to this short as it plays as all exposition without a very strong ending. Glenn McQuaid’s concept is actually quite intriguing but the execution is lacking in this nauseating example of overusing the shakiness factor of the camera that has plagued found footage films for ever since the Blair Witch Project (if my hammered friends can shoot straighter video at a New Year’s Eve party then you’re overdoing it). Swanberg’s Skype inspired little gem is quite effectively creepy and plays out to a confusing yet satisfying end. The clear cut best sequence of the film belongs to its closer from Radio Silence, a group I know really nothing about, as their take on the classic house of horrors is excellently paced and the special effects look brilliant. A scary premise that carries a wicked sense of comic timing and decent performances. 10/31/98, as it is titled, really emerges as the star of the show.

Ultimately V/H/S as a whole is a solid film, spectacular in parts only, that should eventually take its place as one of the better anthologies in recent years. V/H/S is a definite recommend.

Till Next Time,

Movie Junkie TO

Make sure to keep up with what’s going on at Entertainment Maven by liking our Facebook page and having updates delivered right to your Facebook News Feed. It’s the only way to stay on top of all of our articles with the newest blockbusters and all the upcoming films and festivals in Toronto.

Follow me on twitter @moviejunkieto

Contact me at moviejunkieto@gmail.com

 

TAD Summer Screenings 2012 – Detention Review (Paolo Kagaoan)

Toronto After Dark Summer Screenings 2012

Detention

Starring Josh Hutcherson, Shanley Caswell, and Spencer Locke

Directed by Joseph Kahn

Joseph Kahn’s Detention was in distribution hell, but it’s better late than never. It begins with a smaller space – the bedroom of a popular high school cheerleader, emanating the pastel aesthetic of contemporary adolescent suburbia. That might sound sunny to you but she introduces herself as a BITCH and lives up to that name. After behaving in a matter that will make adults neuter and spay themselves for future reference, she talks to the audience, enumerating a list of whatever, we’re reminded that this is a horror comedy and she gets murdered by a slasher called Cinderhella.

The next scene takes place within the bedroom of a girl named Riley, our protagonist who, despite being passably pretty, thinks she’s the second biggest loser in her high school. She reluctantly comes to campus, its population including the self-made cool kid Clapton Davis (pre-Peeta Josh Hutcherson), the heir apparent to teen popularity Ione and her band of cheerleaders, the jock Billy, the class clown and other high school archetypes. The day culminates into a fight between Clapton and Billy that gets broken up before it even gets started, as police tell the student body what we already knew from the first scene. The precarious death of a girl that no one liked is in the back of the minds of these teens who already have their fair share of problems.

The movie radiates with energy but lags during the last few scenes depicting the actual detention itself, where the major characters and other selected teens obligatorily have to find out who Cinderhella is. It labours by putting movies within this movie, subgenre after subgenre and flashbacks within flashbacks. Not every character needs a back story although I get Kahn’s point and it’s a smart one indeed. I already discussed archetypes but it deconstructs them, making the audience realize that just like high schoolers in real life, these characters have grown up together but are inadvertently getting ripped apart. The flashbacks show how hearts are broken, how friendships are severed and explain why people who hate each other still want to hang out with each other, a masochistic trait that people in real life carry a few years after high school. These characters share a bond, and speak their own language.

They also share each other’s pain. Despite the occasional name calling in which the characters participate, this movie is the kind of comedy that has collective sadness dominating its most fascinatingly memorable scene. But make no mistake, the fourth wall breaking pop cultural references – Kardashians! – are still funny. The mix of tragic alone time and comic rapport isn’t from someone pretending to be myopically stuck in adolescence. Instead, it’s written by a disgusting, foul mouthed yet compassionate adult. He puts the distance between himself and adolescence and actually gets the latter’s essence, using a cartoony aesthetic that might just be more confidently laid out than its predecessors.

Oh, and need I remind you that despite or because it co-stars Dane Cook as the school’s curmudgeonly principal, this movie might still end up on my year end top-10 list.

Follow me on Twitter @paolocase

Like Entertainment Maven on Facebook