Month: April 2014

FILTH (2013)

filth_ver5_xlg

James McAvoy gives possibly the best performance of his career to date but unfortunately the film itself doesn’t come close to matching it’s power.

Here he plays one messed up copper in Edinburgh who is in the running for a promotion and will do anything to get it. As the film plays out you get to learn about his motives and what drives him.

The cast all bring something interesting to the table-Jamie Bell as a young impressionable copper, Eddie Marsan as a sappy fellow mason, Imogen Poots as another of his rivals for the promotion, Jim Broadbent giving his best in dreamstate bizarro, even David Soul turns up in one of the weirdest out of place scenes I have seen for a long while.

Irvine Welsh is a very interesting writer and during the 90’s he was churning out some great work. All the adaptations, however pale in comparison. Even Trainspotting, which was an enjoyable flick (the only Danny Boyle film I half-like), was nothing compared to the raw power of the book and here’s the problem, how do you translate the visceral nature of the written word to the big screen. Maybe it can’t be done in Welsh’s case. His writing is so different and although it can be cinematic at times it loses so much of its strength in the translation.

The shocking scenes are no longer shocking in 2014, it’s all a bit ‘yeah, and?’.

Nice to hear Clint Mansell’s soundtrack, he has been doing very well for himself in the world of cinematic orchestration since he had success in the grunge scene in the 90’s with Pop Will Eat Itself (Riffs?  Yeah? Can ya dig it?) most notably with Darren Aronofsky.

It seems at times that this is a film that would have been made better by a more seasoned, talented director. Jon S Baird is probably best known for Cass, which was alright, no big shakes.

The tragedy of it all is the fact that James McAvoy really shows us how great he is portraying the corrupt, racist copper with depth and commitment.

Let’s hope he gets a chance soon to do this on a bigger and better stage.

2.7/5

BUY THE BLU-RAY DVD HERE

DOWNLOAD THE FILM ON iTUNES HERE

BACK IN THE DAY (2013)

hr_Back_in_the_Day_2

 

It is described as a raunchy comedy (I only read that after I had seen it) and that is usually a recipe for the type of film I would nae touch with a barge pole.

I did, however, succumb, although after 20 minutes I started ffwd-ing it as there was NO way I was gonna sit though it all.

Why did you watch it, I hear you ask, dear reader?
Well, it looked like it may have had a few jokes in it and there is always Morena Baccarin, who is very easy upon the ocular.

Anyways, not much else to report except to pose the question-

Why did the writer/director/star Michael Rosenbaum make this?
Did he think that it would become the next Old School?
Why would you want to tell this story that has been told a million times before and a million times better? Questions, questions, questions, dear friends.

I mean look at the poster.
A cross between Police Academy, Porkys, Animal House, etc etc.
Not a par on any of them.

1/5

BUY THE DVD HERE

DOWNLOAD THE FILM ON iTUNES HERE