Balibo Review

I was first made aware of the events that Baliboportrays by the Noam Chomsky documentaryManufacturing Consent. In 1975, the Indonesian military invaded East Timor. Five journalists of the Australian media were covering the invasion – which was basically a massacre, during which time over 180,000 were killed – and eventually lost their lives, killed by the Indonesian army (who maintain to this day that the journalists were caught in the crossfire, rather than executed as the coroner’s report states). Days later, another journalist, Roger East, headed out to East Timor to find out what happened to the Balibo Five. Balibo follows East in his quest for truth.

The Chomsky documentary used the East Timor invasion as an example of the Western media’s disproportionate coverage of potentially unpopular stories – that the invasion, comparable as it was to Pol Pot’s ‘Year Zero’ Cambodian massacre (depicted in the thematically similar The Killing Fields), was given but a fraction of the reportage that the latter received. Chomsky should be pleased then, that this appalling chapter of twentieth century history is being given some attention. I had the pleasure of seeing the film a couple of years ago at the London Film Festival and it is heartening to see it receiving the DVD release it deserves.

Using the framing device of a researcher questioning a survivor of the invasion, recreations of the Balibo Five’s footage and experiences (presented in beautifully grainy 70s style footage) and footage of East and Timorese Foreign Minister José Ramos-Horta retracing the journalist’s steps, director Robert Connolly shows us a series of events, by turns distressing, tragic and abhorrent. That the events depicted are true is both shocking and quietening.

The film is more than worthy of carrying the burden of bringing the truth of the events to screen however – beautifully shot and brilliantly acted, Balibo takes a horrible event and creates a compelling and all-too watchable film. Anthony LaPaglia and Oscar Isaac as East and Ramos-Horta give a pair of excellent central performances and the relationship between the two men is impeccably judged.

The film has more to it than simply a depiction of human tragedy though – there are interesting observations made about the nature and importance of journalism, race politics in the media and the need to rise above personal foibles in order to undertake a greater duty. This may sound rather portentous, but Balibo comes across as anything but, seeming almost like an action adventure at times.

Last month, I reviewed Tomorrow, When the War Began, another Australian film about a foreign invasion, which I enjoyed with some reservations. That film however, is revealed for the fluff it is in comparison to Balibo, which is the kind of film that you really ought to make an effort to see. You will feel good for doing so.

Pelican Blood Review

A film about a couple who bond over bird watching may sound like a rather tame affair, possibly the kind of movie your grandma would enjoy on a Sunday afternoon with a cup of tea and a biscuit. Pelican Blood (named for reasons that become apparent at its conclusion), however, is a story as black as jet and is at times a difficult and troubling to watch. And while it is a good film, it is highly unlikely grandma is going to enjoy it.

Nikko (Treadaway) is a self-harming, suicidal, recently bereaved twenty-two year with an obsession with bird watching and is nearing five hundred sightings, or ‘ticks’ as he refers to them on his list. Following the death of his mother and his release from an institution, Stevie (Booth), his estranged, wildlife activist ex-girlfriend reintroduces herself into Nikko’s life, much to the chagrin of his friends and sister. Nikko and Stevie share a deep love, but their self-destructive tendencies increase when they are together – can the couple survive their own relationship?

The novel of the same name by Cris Freddi, on which the film is based, drew comparisons toTrainspotting by Irvine Welsh. There is also a similarity between the two film adaptations too, particularly as a study of the self-destructiveness of the young and directionless. Director Karl Golden may not have quite the same visual flair as Danny Boyle, but he has a similar knack for portraying interesting and vibrant, yet unglamorous characters in a cinematic and compelling manner. Scenes of violence (or the potential of violence) and sex and intrinsically linked at times, making for disturbing viewing on more than one occasion.

The two leads are very good in their roles and upsettingly believable at points. The supporting cast are also very solid and I particularly enjoyed the relationship between Nikko and his sister Elaine (Clifford), which was fraught with love and tension. The film also boasts a hip indie soundtrack, featuring contributions from acts such as Crystal Castles and The Do.

The bird watching context that fuels much of the action in the film, which in the wrong hands could have become trite and even somewhat ridiculous, was interesting and even (perhaps remarkably) seemed rather edgy and cool at points. It is as much a nihilistic compulsion for Nikko as heroin is for Renton. When asked by a kid what the point of twitching is, Nikko replies forebodingly, ‘there is no point’. To continually compare Pelican Blood to Trainspotting though is to do the film a disservice. It is a very decent film in its own right and whilst unlikely to be seen by millions, it will no doubt attract a dedicated cult following. Seek it out and tick it off your list.

Tajomaru - Avenging Blade Review

Tajomaru follows the exploits of a pair of brothers, Naomitsu and Nobutsuna (Oguri and Ikeuchi) their female childhood friend Ako (Shibamoto) and the street urchin they welcome into their family, Sakuramaru (Tanaka). When the quartet grow up, Ako’s powerful father dies. Although Naomitsu loves Ako, as the elder brother, Nobutsuna decides to take Ako as his own by force for political and monetary benefit. Naomitsu flees with Ako into the forests but are apprehended first by a shock betrayal and secondly by a bandit named Tajomaru. Although Naomitsu eventually defeats him in battle, Ako deserts him. Having bested the bandit, Naomitsu earns the man’s name and his legendary blade and finds himself in charge of a band of outlaws. Later, events conspire to compel Naomitsu to reclaim what he has lost.

Clearly, from the synopsis above, there’s an awful lot going on in Tajomaru. It is unfortunate then, that the film is more than a little dull. Visually, it is stylish and pleasing to the eye, although not in the interior scenes, which look more than a little bit like cheap television studio sets. Outside, however, director Hiroyuki Nakano captures the Japanese countryside in a sumptuous manner. Photography aside, however, the film’s problems are multitudinous.

The characters are dull and uninteresting, the film is deeply conservative in its values and the tone shifts wildly from reserved period drama, to knockabout comedy soundtracked by emo rock, to off-putting melodrama. Lady Ako is criminally underserved by a stupefying, Neanderthal script and even basic things such as continuity are poorly done. Finally, for a film that promises an avenging blade in its very title, the fight sequences are not only infrequent but also smack somewhat of school yard level choreography.

Needless to say, I can’t find a whole lot to recommend Tajomaru: Avenging Blade. The film is perhaps best summed up in a character’s dying words, that are entirely without irony, ‘The potato was delicious’.

Soul Men Review

Samuel L Jackson and Bernie Mac star in this road movie/rockumentary/buddy comedy. Louis and Floyd were backing singers in a legendary 70s soul group, The Real Deal, but fell on hard times after lead singer Marcus Hooks (played by John Legend) went solo. Thirty years later, Floyd is stuck in a retirement home and Louis is living in poverty after a spell in jail. When news of Hooks’ death reaches the pair, they are cajoled into travelling across America to perform at their former band mate’s memorial concert. Things, however, do not go smoothly, as estranged daughters, aging groupies and their own acrimonious relationship threaten to derail the whole venture.

It is unfortunate that the film is overshadowed by the deaths of Bernie Mac and Isaac Hayes (who has a small part as himself), who both passed away within weeks of filming. A sweet tribute to Mac plays out over the credits, which is in stark contrast to the otherwise frenzied tone of the film. Apparently, the film was re-cut following the deaths to allow for a softening of its tone, which is surprising – the film is relentlessly rude from start to finish, with enough f-bombs launched to level a small country.

The film is ultimately something of a mixed bag. There are several funny one liners, the ‘archive’ footage of the band in its heyday is amusing and Samuel L Jackson remains an actor I’d be happy to watch in anything. The music is also not too bad (there was a quite clever moment in which a soul song was given a rendition with country and western instrumentation) and Mac is also reasonably charming. In spite of this, though, the film is wholly unoriginal, rather scattershot in its approach and uncomfortably offhand towards women. There was also a sequence featuring domestic violence, which, while commendably punishing a wrongdoer, sat uncomfortably with the more adolescent humour throughout the rest of the film.

Soul Men is a rather rough diamond then; or a highly polished turd. Given the inconsistencies in tone, it would have been interesting to see how the original cut played out, one hopes it may see the light of day yet, if only out of curiosity.

252 Sign of Life Review

The title of this film refers to the emergency signal used by Japanese fire fighters, basically their equivalent of an SOS signal. When a massive typhoon hits Tokyo, causing enormous hailstones to rain down on the city before a huge tidal wave swamps the streets, hundreds of commuters are killed in an unprecedented natural disaster. Former fireman Yuji and his deaf daughter Shiori are trapped in the subway after it floods, along with a precious few other survivors. Yuki must utilise his survival skills to ensure his small band stays alive long enough to be rescued from the unstable underground prison they find themselves in. Meanwhile, Yuji’s former colleagues above ground work tirelessly to rescue the survivors.

252: Sign of Life is portentous, over-long, predominantly dull and very cheesy. There’s supposedly a central debate about to what extent rescues services should put themselves at risk to help others, but the arguments are uninvolving and lost in the overwhelming tedium. There’s no sense that any of the characters are ever in any real danger – anyone who has a line to speak survives; it’s hard to care about any of them when the film plays it this safe. There’s a passing resemblance to the disaster movies of Roland Emmerich (indeed, the scenes of Tokyo being destroyed do look rather like a monster-less Godzilla movie) and whilst he is hardly a creative genius, at least there’s a sense of fun and entertainment in his films, which is shockingly absent in 252.

True, the scenes of destruction are quite impressive visually and the film’s one moment of invention and interest is done well – an electric aquarium pump is repurposed in an intelligent manner – but this is far too little to recommend the film by. The killing blow comes with its none more melodramatic ending, which takes things so far over the top, it was actually very funny – including, but not limited to, a fireman tearfully saluting his former ally Yuji, emerging from the earth, covered in mud and blood, carrying a comrade on his shoulders, all in glorious slow motion, backed by quivering strings. That scene was wholly, if unintentionally, hilarious, but far from a reason to see this film. When there’s a whole world of excellent cinema out there to explore, it’s impossible to recommend films as dull and listless as this one.

Connected Review

Engineer Grace Wong is kidnapped by thugs looking for her brother. Though her captors have destroyed the telephone in the room she is being held captive in, Grace is able to use her technical skills to repair the phone enough to call a random number. She gets through to slightly hapless debt collector Bob and implores him for help, setting Bob off on a mission to save a complete stranger from a mysterious group of conspirators, putting his life and relationship with his estranged son in danger.

This Chinese-Hong Kong remake of Cellular (and based on the same script by Larry Cohen) hits a lot of the right notes to make a satisfactory, dynamic thriller. Benny Chan proves to be a first rate director of action and tension. The film starts quickly and the pace only drags somewhat towards the finale. Particularly brilliant is the car chase sequence early on, which manages to not only hit all the expected tropes of the well used set piece (shortcuts via storm drains, driving through lorries carrying cans of pop) but also seems genuinely exciting, vaguely realistic and also rather funny. This could also describe the film as a whole. The soundtrack is also very good and adds to the inconsiderable tension.

There are flaws, however, most notably in the basic premise: it is a very big ask to suspend our disbelief that Grace gets through to a mobile phone that just so happens to be in the same city as she is. There are also some dodgy subtitles (‘they were been nosey!’ claims the villain at one point) which is a little disappointing – one imagines that several instances of cheesy dialogue come across much better in the original language. There is also the aforementioned drag towards the end of the third act.

This is not, however, enough to derail what is actually a very well put together film that amuses, entertains and thrills in good measure. The DVD also comes with a second disc of bonus content, making for a generous package. A very solid and satisfying thriller.

Connected is out now on DVD from Cine Asia.