Release of the week
From Up on Poppy Hill
Film
Like Studio Ghibli’s best work, From Up on Poppy Hill is driven by the intimate and beautifully realised relationships between the characters. In addition, there’s a wonderful cast of supporting characters, who while not quite as strange as those that inhabit Spirited Away’s bath house, are certainly as well rounded.
It’s also driven by the soundtrack, much more than most Ghibli movies. The studio have always had recognisable themes, but much of the incidental music, beautiful though it can be, is left to recede into the background. Here almost every cue comes to the fore, giving the movie a sense of musicality that’s rather appealing.
In spite of being insubstantial by Ghibli standards, the movie is far from vapid, and it’s certainly entertaining. The dialogue used on the English language dub works well, and the voice cast, including Sarah Bolger, Anton Yelchin, Jamie Lee Curtis, Ron Howard and Beau Bridges are excellent. While the character designs are pure Ghibli, the animation isn’t always up to the company’s high standard. In particular the mouth movements often tend toward the exaggerated style common in much Japanese animation, rather than the more accurately observed style used in other Ghibli movies, but this is a minor complaint. Overall it’s a solid movie, and one well worth owning.
[Rating:4/5]
Special features
The extras on the disc are somewhat hit-and-miss. At the bottom end of the scale are the awful music video, and the genuinely bizarre featurette on Yokohama. Far more interesting are Hayo Miyazaki’s staff speech, where he’s in full cantankerous old bastard mode, and the trailer retrospective, which gives an insight into the way Ghibli’s style has changed over the years. The stand out, though, is the English language dub featurette, which is genuinely fascinating, and almost worth shelling out the cost of the disc on its own.
[Rating:3/5]
Ben Mortimer
Borrowed Time
Film
Made via the UK low-budget Microwave filmmaking scheme (which also gave birth to Shifty) Borrowed Time is a decent (if a little directionless at times), first time effort from director Jules Bishop.
Kevin (the wonderfully-named Theo Barklem-Biggs) is a young, aimless waster. First glimpsed at stealing some roadside accident flowers for his estranged sister, he’s also in debt to a local small-time hood. In an act of desperation, he attempts to burgle a house he believes to be vacant. The owner (Phil Davies) is very much in residence, and after an initially terse encounter, Kevin and the older, extremely cankerous gent form an odd bond.
Shot on grainy digital, this peculiar little tale is bolstered no end by a fantastic turn by the hugely underrated Davies. Although his character is a grubby, mentally-unhinged type, the actor manages to bring much humanity and personality to the role. The film itself is a little rough around the edges (the cartoonish villain, neither funny nor intimidating, is a big misstep) but there’s a playful whimsy here which is surprisingly affecting. A decent first-time effort.
[Rating:3/5]
Special features
The behind-the-scenes doc (Checkpoints: The Making of Borrowed Time) is an ok 30 minute feature, features some humorous and personable chats with key creative members from the cast and crew. Sadly, that is all the features on the disc.
[Rating:2/5]
Adam Lowes
The Kick
Film
The blurb says it is a “hilarious and compelling action comedy”. Sadly this is neither and although this tale of a martial arts performing family getting caught up in the theft and attempted recovery of a ancient dagger has a few exciting moments, director Prachya Pinkaew is working with a cast that singularly lack charisma and so the admittedly energetic and accomplished fight sequences fail to engage or cohere with the film as a whole.
We’ve seen Tony Jaa and Iko Uwais do much better fighting and Jackie Chan has spent almost his entire career alloying action to laughs to much greater effect than this. A couple of decent-ish fight sequences do not compensate for the rest of what we have to sit through.
Poor.
[Rating:1/5]
Special features
Trailer. That is all. That is not very good.
[Rating:1/5]
Dave Roper
Catch up
The Reluctant Fundamentalist
Film
Pakistani-born Changez Khan (Riz Ahmed) comes tantalizingly close to realising the American dream. With a coveted placement as an analyst at prestigious firm Underwood Sampson, the gifted, eloquent student has a glittering future guaranteed. Mentored by ruthless exec Jim Cross (Kiefer Sutherland) Changez immediately impresses with his focus, capacity for evaluation and clarity of vision. The doors of US high society are flung open for him until the events of September 11th devastate the life he had so painstakingly built. In present day Lahore, Changez Khan is a professor at the local university, beloved by his students, and a person of interest to the CIA, suspected of collusion in the kidnapping of an American colleague.
Based on the novel by Mohsin Hamid, The Reluctant Fundamentalist is a compelling and skilful piece of craft. The mesmerising central performance from Riz Ahmed is complemented by the strong support of Sutherland and Liev Schreiber and by Mira Nair’s intimate filmmaking style. The feature masterfully exploits the same emotions and fears as Homeland but with a breadth of perspective that eschews any America, F*ck Yeah, pom-pom shaking in favour of the confusing grey area of real lives.
Maintaining its question mark over the extent of Changez’s commitment to his cause and ramping up the atmosphere of unease until the end, The Reluctant Fundamentalist commands attention until the credits rolled. With an impressive cast and a dazzling lead, it is an absolute must see.
[Rating:4/5]
Special features
None
Emily Breen
