Reviewing Movies

What young adult hasn’t some time or other wished he could tell his employer, “take this job and shove it”; his lover, “go to hell”; and the world in general, “stop, I want to get off”. In the movie Shem Daniel, played by Asier Newman, does all three; then goes to visit his Jewish Grandmother—the only person he really cares for. Grandmothers are not responsible for raising their grandsons so they don’t have to be judgmental; they only have to love them. So his Bubba sends Daniel on a trek across Europe to find the non-existent grave of his great-grandfather. In the journey that follows Daniel learns a great deal about his ancestors, his Jewish roots, their common heritage and history—but more particularly he begins to discover himself.

On the way he lives a hedonist lifestyle, indulges his bi-sexual tastes, and parties hearty. It is remarkable the number of people who are attracted to this lost soul and take him in. In one notable scene a rabbi takes him home to have dinner with his family and he embarrasses himself with his lack of religious and cultural etiquette. In a scene that makes the hairs on the back of one’s neck stand on end he stands in the middle of a stark stone room filled with the names of millions of Jews lost in the Holocaust. He walks through the ruins of desecrated graveyards looking for a name. When he finally hits rock bottom he is visited by the spectre of his lost great-grandfather. In the end what he finds is himself and the movie ends with his Bubba meeting up with him in Rome.

Six foot one Charlie Hunnan has a six-pack that has graced several magazine covers; Cherub-faced five foot something Elijah Wood sports baby-fat pudge he should be ashamed to expose onscreen. That the latter is included in a cast of back-street brawlers owes much to the star power of Lord of the Rings. Although the anti-hero of the piece dies in Shakespearean Tragedy like circumstances one has to wonder if this movie does anything but serve to glorify soccer hooliganism. As one who has little interest in organized sport the level at which soccer fans identify with their chosen teams and equate their success with patriotism and their own machismo is lost on me. For the protagonists in this movie such loyalties are life itself. Much is made of the fact that soccer hooligans are ordinary working Joes who just happen to belong to Football Firms, patronize their Firm’s bar, fanatically support their team, and engage in fisticuffs with opposing fans. Indeed we see scenes of Charlie’s character teaching history and gym to his first form class. That greenish tinge that is washed over Elijah’s character is reminiscent of Gollum in Lord of the Rings.

Based loosely on the series by Science Fiction/Fantasy writer Philip José Farmer this is a Sci Fi Channel made-for-TV movie. This is a high concept movie the premise being that everyone throughout history gets reincarnated in the prime of life on a planet dubbed Riverworld. The movie comes with its own built-in anachronisms placing in the same time-frame a space explorer from the future, an off-world alien, a Neanderthal man, the Roman Emperor Nero, and the author Mark Twain whom we find busy building a Mississippi Riverboat. Indeed, one of the actors actually died in a fall from its upper decks. This having been a pilot for a perspective series that has yet to have become realized the production values are better than average.

The Riverboat sequences, once we get to them half way through the movie, seem quite realistic; getting there requires a few coffees to maintain alertness. There are no name actors among the cast.

The OC is by way of being yet another guilty pleasure.

Where to begin? Peter Gallagher as the poor kid who marries the rich heiress, Adam Brody their mixed up Christmakuh celebrating son, and Benjamin McKenzie the kid from East LA who lives in their pool house. Although the adults in this series have well-developed plot-lines in the end this is a high school soap opera. The soulful-eyed, brooding Ryan doesn’t look like a prize fighter but he’s more likely to lead with his right than with a closing argument as Sandy, the man who gave him a second chance would. As the boy born with a silver spoon Seth redefines the term geek and seems to have trouble living up to his responsibilities.

The young people in this series often seem more mature than their parents. To a poor country boy who didn’t get a driver’s license until his mid-twenties and his first car until he was 30 the things these kids take for granted boggle the mind. Palatial ocean-front palaces, designer clothes, and all the fanciest toys. The high school coffee-shop would have been welcomed at the university I attended.

I suppose I’m not all that familiar with the soap opera genre but these people seem to lurch from one crisis to the next. For all their golden opportunities these kids seem to be pros at squandering their chances. For all the sanctimonious lectures on teenage pregnancy the plotlines here tend toward heavy petting, advanced bedroom activities, booze and drugs. With all the partying, booze, drugs and late hours he keeps it’s hard to believe that Volchok could keep that ironman physique of his or maintain his balance on a surf board.

The online cost of this movie on DVD finally reached my comfort level so I watched it this week at home at my leisure. It’s remarkable how much I missed upon watching the rental copy or have forgotten since. What stuck me initially this time round is how much Mel Gibson has succumbed to middle-age spread. Heath Ledger, who plays his onscreen son, looks more like the lithe lad who played the early Mad Max movies. The American Revolutionary War which forms the backdrop for this piece was a historical event and the technical people were at pains to keep the costuming, weaponry, and other details in period. Although historical battles and generals are portrayed the character, Benjamin Martin and his family and friends are fictitious. In many ways this movie seems to be a re-hashing of the events of Braveheart with the exception that here his sons die and he manages to survive. And yes, here the British lose; though it was the intervention of the French Fleet that sealed their fate.

The parallels between these two War Dramas are uncanny. Mel Gibson’s character is the reluctant leader of an underdog group of rebels. He is driven to come out of his self-imposed seclusion by the murder of a family member by a cruel overlord who bedevils him throughout. A rabble band of loyal followers undertake a guerilla campaign against the enemy though here the swamps of Carolina stand in for the high fells of Scotland. Both stories end in a pitched battle the difference here being that the rebels won this one. Being a Canadian and a member of the British Commonwealth I can not say that the good guys won this one—but then Gibson is an Australian by birth, not an American. It is made plain that the seeds of the next major American Conflagration 90 years later were sown here. Somehow Gibson has failed to re-fight the American Civil War.

Although Gibson gets the star billing here in many ways this is Heath Ledger’s movie. But then Gibson didn’t direct this movie. Mel is ever the smart aleck and no more so than in the scenes with Cornwallis’ Great Danes who seem to prefer Gibson’s company to that of their owner. The idea of two opposing armies standing in straight lines and firing hand-loaded rifles at one another until one line or the other broke and ran seems strange in an error when one bomb dropped from 5 miles in the air can destroy an entire city and everyone in it; though no less barbaric. That there should be gentlemen’s agreements about how the affair be conducted is even more quaint. The cost in human carnage and civilian casualties is no less horrendous.

One final parallel can be drawn. One charismatic individual can make all the difference if he can find men who will follow him and remain loyal.

The Sovereign. One who legally can do no wrong being in effect the law not to mention head of the church. In the opening scenes much is made of the fact that although she cannot vote it is her government. She also does not need a driver’s license; though she can drive for hundreds of miles without leaving her own property. While having lunch with the Queen Mum she was once chided, “Should you have that second glass of wine; after all you have to reign all afternoon.” I’m sure she misses those informal moments. Monarchy is an anachronistic holdover from earlier times. Whether or not a man who reputedly talks to his tomatoes should be king is a matter of some concern. One can also understand why his son, William is reluctant to assume the sentence that is his birthright. Being King is a life sentence. Whatever dalliances Phil may have been rumoured to have had over the years they have been carried out discretely—the tabloid press have printed no bedroom scenes of the royal wick being wetted. Unfortunately Diana of Wales improprieties are all too well documented. But whatever her dubious status, she is still mother to a future sovereign. Although the cause of the crisis that forms this drama her death and its aftermath is treated in a factual manner; this movie is not actually about her.

Which brings us to The Queen. Although the royal “we” was not amused, the rest of us are in for a treat. Helen Mirren deserves every accolade she received for her performance here. Fortunately one can no longer get the axe at the Tower for having had such impertinence. Bearing an uncanny similarity in visage to HRH it is her mannerisms and bearing that convince us. Tony Blair comes off as a boyish pretender here. As Phil James Cromwell seems most out of touch insisting on taking the boys stalking to take their minds off their grief. Alex Jennings looks the flustered also-ran a king in waiting would have to be and has that red-faced look Britons seem to possess. The motherless boys are kept in the background at all times. Although this tragedy touches them most closely this movie is not about them. Tony Blair’s offspring receive more screen time.

Indeed the Blairs are cast as pivotal to the outcome of this re-enactment; insisting on a public funeral, the return of the Royals from Balmoral to Buckingham Palace and the flying of the Royal Standard above the palace at half mast—an unprecedented act for the sovereign. The views of Scotland which stood in for Balmoral are magnificent. The interiors make the Royals look as frugal as our own Roy Thomson. It would seem the Royal apartments lack the pomp and circumstance of the State rooms with their Old Masters hanging on the walls. We get many views of the royal bedchamber though having HRH referred to as Old Cabbage is a unique touch. Prince Edward with his unique access has produced a series of documentaries about his family’s history but as is often the case fiction probably cuts closer to the bone. For Royal watchers this movie gives an intimate portrait of what may go on when the Royals truly let their hair down.