Last Lot of Capsule Reviews for TIFF 2011

Last Lot of Capsule Reviews for TIFF 2011

The last lot of capsule reviews are listed here, written after TIFF 2011 has ended.  This makes a total of 65 feature films reviewed.

Capsule Reviews:

UN AMOUR DE JEUNEUSSE (France/Germany 2011) ***** Top 10
Directed by Mia Hansen-Løve

Mia Hansen-Løve proves herself a filmmaker to be reckoned with.  Her immensely satisfying emotional LE PERE DES MES ENFANTS (last year) is followed by an equally heart wrenching film about the aftermath of first love.  The English title is GOODBYE FIRST LOVE.  Camille (Lola Creton) is totally in love with Sullivan (Sebastian Urzendowsky), both in their teens.  Sullivan surprises his parents that he is quitting school and travelling with two friends to South America in search of Utopia.  When asked if the girlfriend is coming along, his answer is no.  The long distance break up turns out to be too much for either of them.  Camille traces his every move and treasures his letters but Sullivan eventually stops communication with the logic that this way would be better as it involves less heart break.  Camille barely copes till she meets another man.  She falls in love with the older amn and him with her, while advancing her career as an architect t the same time.  They get engaged.  As in stories of this nature, Sullivan returns and Camille cannot help herself but make love with him again.  Mia Hansen-Løve’s film is not about who stays with whom or who gets rejected but about emotions, feelings, maturity and growing up.  The result is an extremely moving film in which the audience is entrusted with the emotions of the lead characters.  The beauty of the film’s settings as in the Loire Valley also enhances the film’s beauty.

THE AWAKENING (UK 2011) ***
Directed by Nick Murphy

Nick Murphy’s ghost story is a handsomely mounted production complete with period setting, gorgeous set design and costumes.  The story cocnenrs a renowned author and debunker of hoaxes, Florence Cathcart (Rebecca Hall), called to a provincial boarding school to explain away sightings of a phantom boy. What she discovers will prompt her to reconsider her deductive tactics — and send her mind spiralling back to a distant, forgotten past. Set in 1921, The Awakening belongs to a great English tradition of ghost stories that work their chills through psychology and suggestion.  The film is traditionally laid out – Florence is shown at some of her useful and successful outings, and then she meets more than what she bargains for!  The title of the film hints of the plot’s twist.  The film is basically the story of another human being who claims: “I see dead people!’ which is ser in period England.  But too many incidents stretching credibility tend to conveniently take place towards the last 30 minute of the film.

THE DESCENDANTS (USA 2011) ****
Directed by Alexander Payne

This film has the perfect storyline.  The protagonist, Matt King (George Clooney) is one who has failed his family for the reason that he has put his work first.  When his wife has an accident and is in a coma, he learns that he has failed as a husband and father.  His wife had been cheating on him, discovered by the elder daughter, Alexandra (Shailene Woodley).  The rest of the film has him redeeming himself in a clumsy, hilarious and still heroic way.  George Clooney is at his acting best in the role of Matt King and Payne is also at his writing and directing best.  This is a larger than life story set in scenic Hawaii with timely environmental issues thrown in for good measure.  Matt is also the head of a storied Hawaiian family, descendants of indigenous Pacific royalty and American entrepreneurs who own the state’s last sprawling plot of virgin land. Under pressure from all sides to sell, he finds himself facing a moral and financial decision that could forever mark his family’s legacy.  Based on Kaui Hart Hemmings’ novel, THE DESCENDANTS should be a definite hit with audiences and critics alike.

THE DEEP BLUE SEA (UK 2011) ****
Directed by Terence Davies

The title of the new Terence Davies film comes from the English phrase ‘between the devil and the deep blue sea’ which refers to two undesirable situations, in this case for Lady Collyer (Rachel Weisz), wife of Sir William.  She, Hester, the wife of a British Judge (Simon Russell Beale) is caught in a self-destructive love affair with a Royal Air Force pilot, Freddie (Tom Hidddleston).  When Freddie learns of her attempted suicide, she is spurned and rejected while she refuses to return to the drab life with the still loving and forgiving judge.  The fist 30 minutes of Davies’ film is a bit over self indulgent with Davies’ use of an overloud score and long takes but the film finally gets a good grip once Davies decides to get into the business of Terence Rattigan’s (THE WINSLOW BOY) play on hand.  Rattigan writes the best plays and his words are carefully chosen as his dramatic set-ups.  With Davies oldies American score and long takes combined with Rattigan’s prose, the result is a one of the finest entertainment in the old British tradition.  Weisz is excellent.  The best scenes are the ones where Hester and Sir William sit down with Sir William’s mother.

J’AIME REGARDER DES FILLES (France 2011) ***1/2
Directed by Frédéric Louf

J’AIME REGARDER DES FILLES is a love story concerning young people.  Frédéric Louf captures the youth essence of this love story giving it the free flowing, free-spirited exuberance that comes with falling in love, heads over heels, for the first time.  The character of the protagonist has the same feel as Antoine Doinel of the Francois Truffaut movies (LES QUATRE CENT COUPS, L’AMOUR EN FUITE) and watching this film brings back the wonderful nostalgia of viewing the Truffaut films.  The middle-class and irresponsible Primo (Pierre Niney) chases after the wealthy haute-bourgeois Gabrielle (Lou de Laage).  He fabricates lies about his background in order to get into her social circle but is eventually found out.  Gabrielle ditches Primo who still persists despite having another girl fall for him.  Niney is excellent reminding one of a young Jean-Pierre Léaud.  The political background of the times prior to the 1981 presidential elections and the associated left/right prejudices add to the richness of the story.

JEFF, WHO LIVES AT HOME (USA 2011) **
Directed by the Duplass Brothers

The Duplass brothers deliver what they are consistently good at – low budget, little comedies (THE PUFFY CHAIR, CYRUS, BAGHEAD), and JEFF, WHO LIVES AT HOME is no exception.  The adjective small also describes the scope of their film, which is that it accomplishes little in terms of everything.  JEFF, WHO LIVES AT HOME centres of Jeff (Jason Segel) and the story concerns the strained relationship between him and his married brother, Pat (Ed Helms).  They do not particularly like each other, Pat thinking Jeff crazy that he follows what he thinks are signs and Jeff believing that Pat is too strict in his life style.  Pat forces Jeff to help him when he thinks his wife, Linda (Judy Greer) is cheating on him.  The film works fine with this simple plot that delivers a message and the occasional laugh.  But the script is too convenient dishing out problems and solutions.  It is as if the BDuplass Vrothers thought of the solution before hand and added in the problem after.  Segel and Susan Sarandon (as the mother) adds some prestige to the Brothers’ little film but JEFF, WHO LIVES AT HOME remains still too conveniently a little film.

SMUGGLER (Japan 2011) ****
Directed by Katsuhiro Ishii

This ultra, ultra violent Japanese gangster actioner concerns a failed actor Kinuta (Satoshi Tsumabuki).  To repay a loan, he must work with silent tough guy Joe (Masatoshi Nagase) and his leprechaun-like sidekick, transporting sensitive items in the dead of night for shady clients with lots of yen.  But when they haul the body of a murdered yakuza boss, they become targets of his psychotic foot soldier Kawashima, a unibrowed sadist decked out in pinstripes who pledges bloody revenge on everyone who took part in the deed. Their lives are further imperiled when they must transport, Hannibal Lecter– style, the mysterious ultra-assassin known as Vertebrae (Masanobu Ando), who was responsible for the killing.  Ne warned!  This film has the most gruesome torture scenes – ones that make those in SAW look like something staged by a kid.  Guaranteed to make the audience cringe and turn away!  If that is not enough, the torture continues to no end.  If you can take the punishment as well as bout of uncomfortable humour throughout the film, Ishii’s film is actually quite a feat!  Compelling to watch from start to end, with larger than life, interesting characters, Ishii can swing you from one character’s side to the other, whether good or bad.  The result is a totally engrossing and unforgettable film, which is rightly slotted for the Midnight Madness section of TIFF.  This one gets my vote for this year’s best MM movie.