When I first saw the preview for Repo Men, I thought that the premise was bit too similar to Repo! The Genetic Opera (Darren Lynn Bousman, 2008), a film that was based on a play of the same name. Furthermore, I was a bit stunned to learn that the Repo Men is apparetly an adaptation of Eric Garcia's The Repossession Mambo, a novel released in 2009. I wonder if Garcia may have based his story on Bousman's film and/or the play. Does all of that seem a bit confusing? If I have managed to at least get your mind running in something akin to a circle, then you are on your way to understanding how a film like Repo Men works.
Remy (Jude Law) and Jake (Forest Whitaker) are childhood friends and work as partners for a company called The Union, which specializes in providing synthetic organs (called "artiforgs") to those in need at astronomical prices. However, the price tag does little to hinder folks from virtually signing their own death warrant, thanks predominately to the salesman pitch of Frank (Liev Shrieber), who seems to relish in telling his clients that "You owe it to yourself; you owe it your family," assuring them that there are several payment plans available to accommodate any lifestyle. Still, it is virtually inevitable that those who purchase artiforgs will fall behind on their payments, and after a few months of leeway, Remy and Jake are among the Repo Men sent by The Union to repossess them, which typically results in the client's death.
Remy is pretty much the best at what he does, which is a cause for concern within The Union when he decides (in part due to the fact that his wife will likely leave him otherwise) that he does not particularly care to continue his line of work, preferring instead to work in sales. Then, ironically enough, while carrying out his final repo, Remy finds himself in need of an artificial heart thanks to his equipment malfunctioning. So, his wife leaves him (taking their son with her), and now that he has become one of the very individuals he has spent his career hunting down, Remy finds that he can no longer stomach his work. Since he refuses to work, he makes no money, and quickly falls behind on his payments. Eventually, the film turns into both an action flick and a love story as Remy must evade his former co-workers that are now tracking him down, but not without the help of the lovely Beth (Alice Braga), who is more artificial than human thanks to the double-digit number of artiforgs keeping her alive.
Even though there are some scenes of gore, a bit of action here and there, and a romantic interest that comes in to play in the second half of the film, Repo Men is a dark comedy at heart. At most times, it is cleverly satirical, especially in the first and third acts. There are two key twists that occur in the last act, one of which is predictable to some degree, and another that caught me almost completely by surprise. The latter of these two, when reflecting on the film during the credits, was something I came to admire due its function as a proper explanation for the utterly bizarre (and somewhat incoherent) nature of what transpires in the last thirty minutes. I had a lot of questions during that time, and one simple revelation answered all of them while simultaneously accentuating the sardonic aspects of the film. Some viewers might be turned off by it, but I thought it was fitting, especially for a film laden with twisted humor. Repo Men deals with a particular something (it would be cruel of me to spoil it) that, in my experience, is rarely seen in film, and even more of a rarity is to see it executed effectively, as I believe it is here.
B
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Theatrical Review: The Last Song (Julie Anne Robinson, 2010)
The Last Song (Julie Anne Robinson, 2010):
I have never read a Nicholas Sparks novel. I have never seen a film based on a Nicholas Sparks novel – until now. I was invited by a dear friend of mine to see the The Last Song tonight, and decided to brave the throng of giddy teenage/college women and sit through it. Generally, I check Rotten Tomatoes and read a handful of reviews before committing to see a film I am not particularly interested in, but since it was a spur-of-the-moment ordeal, I neglected to indulge in that habit. So, upon exiting the theater and returning home, I was curious to see how the film was fairing with the critics. To my astonishment, the general consensus seems to be that The Last Song is terrible. After briefly skimming the list of reviews, I was even more dumbfounded to discover that the major qualm most reviewers had with the film was the performance given by Miley Cirus.
First of all, I quite enjoyed this film. Sure, it was predictable and ridden with clichés, but there were also moments of originality, and certain events were handled in unexpected ways that saved the film from being ridiculous or overly dramatic. Granted, I have not seen very many chick flicks, but I still found the story engaging. The performances, too, were a pleasant surprise. I generally do not care for Greg Kinear (which really has nothing to do with his acting ability, but that is another story), but I thought he was superb. Unlike most critics, I also believe that Miley Cirus gave a rather solid performance.
The story, for those unfamiliar with the novel (like myself), follows Ronnie (Miley Cyrus), who is fresh out of high school, her younger brother Jonah (Bobby Coleman), and their father Steve (Greg Kinear) as the trio spend the summer together at Steve's beach house. While Jonah could not be happier to spend time with his father, Ronnie is still spiteful over her parents' divorce - the anger being directed at her father. Though she is an incredibly gifted pianist (taught by her father), she has refused to play since the divorce and refuses to go to Juilliard, to which she was accepted. This slowly changes, however, when she meets a boy named Will (Liam Hemsworth), as she lowers her defenses and eventually falls in love. During this time, her relationship with her father also gradually improves. But things are not quite what they seem. Both her father and Will are keeping secrets from Ronnie, which when brought out in the open have devastating effects on her. The nature of these secrets lies with the story of a local church that caught fire the previous year, for which her father is rebuilding a stained glass window. So as not to reveal too much of the plot, even though it is fairly straightforward and conventional, I will say no more.
Ultimately, The Last Song is a story of love and forgiveness, both with romantic and familial relationships. It is a story of learning to accept the fact that nobody is perfect - especially those closest to you. Everyone makes mistakes, even those we would least expect to; those whose faults have the potential to hurt you the most. I feel that this would have been more effective in the film if more of the screen time had been devoted to exploring certain aspects of the pivotal characters' lives. For example, why did Ronnie's parents get divorced? A proper explanation is never given in the film. While conversing after the film with my friend, who had read the novel, she informed me of several relevant tidbits that were not translated to the film (which included the explanation for the divorce). After hearing all that was left out, my initial opinion of the film dropped somewhat, as it seemed almost inexcusable that certain elements of the story - some of which were of crucial significance to those unacquainted with the novel - were missing, for it detracted from the overall emotional impact. Had some of this information been incorporated into the script, the characters would have not only had much more depth, but it would have also served to draw the viewer deeper into the narrative. Instead, I was constantly waiting with waning patience to learn certain things about the characters that were never to be revealed. It is not that this kept The Last Song from being an engaging film, but rather that it had to potential to be effective on a much greater level.
B-
I have never read a Nicholas Sparks novel. I have never seen a film based on a Nicholas Sparks novel – until now. I was invited by a dear friend of mine to see the The Last Song tonight, and decided to brave the throng of giddy teenage/college women and sit through it. Generally, I check Rotten Tomatoes and read a handful of reviews before committing to see a film I am not particularly interested in, but since it was a spur-of-the-moment ordeal, I neglected to indulge in that habit. So, upon exiting the theater and returning home, I was curious to see how the film was fairing with the critics. To my astonishment, the general consensus seems to be that The Last Song is terrible. After briefly skimming the list of reviews, I was even more dumbfounded to discover that the major qualm most reviewers had with the film was the performance given by Miley Cirus.
First of all, I quite enjoyed this film. Sure, it was predictable and ridden with clichés, but there were also moments of originality, and certain events were handled in unexpected ways that saved the film from being ridiculous or overly dramatic. Granted, I have not seen very many chick flicks, but I still found the story engaging. The performances, too, were a pleasant surprise. I generally do not care for Greg Kinear (which really has nothing to do with his acting ability, but that is another story), but I thought he was superb. Unlike most critics, I also believe that Miley Cirus gave a rather solid performance.
The story, for those unfamiliar with the novel (like myself), follows Ronnie (Miley Cyrus), who is fresh out of high school, her younger brother Jonah (Bobby Coleman), and their father Steve (Greg Kinear) as the trio spend the summer together at Steve's beach house. While Jonah could not be happier to spend time with his father, Ronnie is still spiteful over her parents' divorce - the anger being directed at her father. Though she is an incredibly gifted pianist (taught by her father), she has refused to play since the divorce and refuses to go to Juilliard, to which she was accepted. This slowly changes, however, when she meets a boy named Will (Liam Hemsworth), as she lowers her defenses and eventually falls in love. During this time, her relationship with her father also gradually improves. But things are not quite what they seem. Both her father and Will are keeping secrets from Ronnie, which when brought out in the open have devastating effects on her. The nature of these secrets lies with the story of a local church that caught fire the previous year, for which her father is rebuilding a stained glass window. So as not to reveal too much of the plot, even though it is fairly straightforward and conventional, I will say no more.
Ultimately, The Last Song is a story of love and forgiveness, both with romantic and familial relationships. It is a story of learning to accept the fact that nobody is perfect - especially those closest to you. Everyone makes mistakes, even those we would least expect to; those whose faults have the potential to hurt you the most. I feel that this would have been more effective in the film if more of the screen time had been devoted to exploring certain aspects of the pivotal characters' lives. For example, why did Ronnie's parents get divorced? A proper explanation is never given in the film. While conversing after the film with my friend, who had read the novel, she informed me of several relevant tidbits that were not translated to the film (which included the explanation for the divorce). After hearing all that was left out, my initial opinion of the film dropped somewhat, as it seemed almost inexcusable that certain elements of the story - some of which were of crucial significance to those unacquainted with the novel - were missing, for it detracted from the overall emotional impact. Had some of this information been incorporated into the script, the characters would have not only had much more depth, but it would have also served to draw the viewer deeper into the narrative. Instead, I was constantly waiting with waning patience to learn certain things about the characters that were never to be revealed. It is not that this kept The Last Song from being an engaging film, but rather that it had to potential to be effective on a much greater level.
B-
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