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Ellie88
Reviews
A Mighty Heart (2007)
Political poignancy, but difficult to watch.
A MIGHTY HEART is one of those films whose greatness is its downfall. It is shockingly powerful, realistically filmed and really brings home the torment of a wife who looses her husband, but at the same time the authentic portrayal of the tragedies and mistreatment around the world make it difficult viewing, and it doesn't get close to enjoyable.
Angelina Jolie plays Mariane Pearl, pregnant wife of journalist Daniel Pearl who was tragically murdered while working in Karachi, Pakistan. The film focuses on Mariane's struggle to cope with the difficult and ultimately futile search for Daniel, culminating in his tragic execution. Although a clash of cultures and political beliefs drives the events in this film it manages to avoid preaching any kind of opinion or blaming any type of people, amplifying the singular theme of Mariane's love for her husband and desire to find him.
Pearl is kidnapped after being lured to a false interview with the notorious Sheikh Mubarak Ali Gilani, a suspected terrorist with links to the 'Shoe Bomber'. After Pearl doesn't return home Mariane informs the American and Pakistani authorities, and an investigation ensues. Days later the team receive photos of Daniel shackled with a gun to his head. An email states that he is being kept in inhumane conditions, similar to that of many Pakistani terror suspects held at Guantanamo Bay, with demands that they be released. The group also claim that Daniel is a CIA agent. Tensions are further exasperated by embarrassed officials denying the involvement of Pakistani nationals, blaming other extremist groups, in order to avoid tarnishing the countries reputation. Following leads the team locate Gilani only to discover he was never to meet Pearl, and that the interview had been a setup. A video is eventually received of Pearls brutal murder, in which his throat is slit and he is beheaded.
As the title suggests Mariane remains incredibly strong throughout the investigation, almost to the detriment of procuring empathy from the audience, as there is no real insight into her turmoil other than the occasional outburst. That said Jolie is terrific in the role. I'm difficult to please when it comes to well known actors/actresses taking on accents that clearly aren't their own, but she carries the French twang believably, using it as a vehicle to assist in building the persona of Mariane Pearl. If anyone doubts Jolie's aptitude for serious acting, they should see this. In spite of this I was still occasionally very aware that I was watching 'a famous actress' in 'a movie', which harms the power of the documentary style filming, and I got the feeling that maybe Jolie is too big for this type of film.
And although A MIGHTY HEART is about Mariane's struggle, not Daniels, he is grossly under-developed. All his scenes portray him as a doe-faced typical 'nice guy', as if the audience are so naive that they will just accept such a one-dimensional character. His conviction to not deny his Jewish roots is his only depth, which while admirable, is delivered with a flaccid demeanour. His minimal on screen time wasn't used to its advantage, resulting in my sympathy with his ordeal being limited to a stranger's basic knowledge of events rather than empathy with a familiar character.
The filming is powerful, with documentary style camera shots and frank, seemingly unscripted conversations taking the audience on the journey to find Pearl, conveying the confused urgency of the investigation. This gripping realism causes a number of the scenes verge on uncomfortable. During a disturbing scene in which a connection to a suspect is hung by his wrists to coax information from him conveys the brutality employed by the authorities in such countries. All the boldness of the American FBI agent who witnesses this is clearly shattered with the uncomfortable expression on his face, and his previous ignorant praise of forceful procedures and typical 'American Bravado' is poignantly deconstructed.
Films like this force me to ask myself the difference between a 'good movie' and a movie I want to watch. The power of A MIGHTY HEART lies in bringing the threat of terrorism uncomfortably close to a western audience (arguably a scare tactic, with actual threat being questionable), and a final thought states that in the same week Pearl lost his life, a number of other Pakistani men did too. This is an important message, encouraging equal worth to be given to the deaths of unknown people in under-developed countries as is given to westerners.
A MIGHTY HEART is a 'good movie' with strong political poignancy, but as far as being one I want to watch, it is more comparable to a harsh documentary with little lightness; your not going to want to watch it again. I'm hesitant to say I didn't like it, but I don't think I enjoyed it.
Rise of the Footsoldier (2007)
Stereotypical football-thug with little imagination.
'Rise of the Footsoldier' follows the unrelentingly cruel journey of gangster Carlton Leach and his associates through drugs, violence, sex, violence, guns, violence and did I mention violence?
Protagonist Carlton Leach (Ricci Harnett), member of the I.C.F (Inner City Firm); a group of football hooligans turned professional gangsters, guides the audience through the events leading to the 1995 'Range Rover Killings', in which three gang members fell victim to particularly vicious professional 'hits'. Leach's success as a doorman and talent for locating aptly violent friends to control unruly punters at a local nightclub launches him into the company of notorious drug dealers and gangsters, profitably benefiting from the 80s/90s rave scene and drug culture.
Opening with brutally realistic shots of the dead men, the viewer is left thirsty to understand what happened, but left wholly unsatisfied. The next 2 hours meander through a series of countless character introductions. Each of these basically establishes yet another typical 'hard man', shows him assaulting usually undeserving victims, before probably coming to an even nastier end. What little emotional understanding the audience is allowed to form for a few of the characters (for example a family man blamed for missing drugs) is quickly destroyed when they are either anti-climactically killed, or their storyline left unresolved. The hints of a plot introduced in the beginning are inadequately concluded with vague impressions of how the murders occurred, as the events are slotted into place with little reward for persevering with the hazy muddle of previous events.
This film has been made with a standard formula in mind, for an audience who prefer violence and 'ard nut' slang to an actual storyline. 'Rise of the Footsoldier' borrows too much from 'Football Factory', leaving out the good bits, demonstrating no moral ramifications of hooligan subculture or establishing empathy with the protagonist. The violence, although brilliantly shot, seems excessive and implausible because no one is around long enough for the audience to form an emotional attachment. The implication that the gangs are untouchable by the police is fair enough, but machete-wielding doormen regularly committing blatant murder in public places pushes the imagination of even the most willing viewer. The audience are left bewildered as to the relevance of many key events and developed characters that had no knock on effect on the eventual conclusion. Attempted 'gritty-realism' is further destroyed with a substance called 'Truth Serum', which the Turkish Mafia use to coax honest answers from unwilling individuals. This is NOT the genre in which to invent psychologically unrealistic drugs, and renders the interrogation almost absurd.
The actual scenes of violence (before becoming repetitive) hold some tension, spliced with rapid flashes of colour or the end of a film reel. Seamlessly choreographed brawls coupled with obligatory but effective shaky hand-held camera work saves the film, but unfortunately the plot (or lack there of) limits it to a niche demographic.
In essence, the events this film is based on aren't deservedly represented, and an adequately sequential storyline is sacrificed for stereotypical characters and an unoriginal plot. This film has a place in the market, but if you like a bit of brain with your brutality this one isn't for you.
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