London Film Festival review - My Amityville Horror

I think I was the only person at the screening of this documentary who hadn’t seen any of the Amityville Horror films. While I am interested in the supernatural, I am not really into horror. Despite not knowing anything about the original case or its pop-cultural aftermath, I could still enjoy My Amityville Horror as a very odd character piece.

The film looks at Daniel Lutz, who was ten years old when his family moved into 112 Ocean Avenue in 1975, where the DeFeo family had been murdered a year earlier. The Lutzes abandoned the house after 28 days, claiming that they had experienced a smorgasbord of ghostly activity, including poltergeists, possession and ectoplasm.  It would be fair to say that these events have affected Daniel deeply. He is a very intense guy, a tough nut who left home as a young teenager never to return. He appears to have been in therapy for most of his life.

Director Eric Walter has been fascinated with the case for years, and started a website as a teenager dedicated to gathering together all the evidence he could. He said that even he found a lot of new information in Danny’s testimony. Certainly Danny’s feelings about his step-father bring a whole other dimension to this story.    

I have one specific issue with this film – the cinematography is a little too slick and artistic. Digital technology allows professional results at a fraction of the cost compared to a few years ago, but that doesn’t mean that it is always necessary to have moody lighting. In a documentary like this it seems unnecessary and distracts somewhat from the person in question.  

I don’t know what to make of the events at 112 Ocean Avenue, and we’ll never know what really happened.  The tales Danny tells seem unbelievable, but he does seem to believe them.  This is diverting rather than fascinating little film about a very strange guy who had some very strange experiences.  Though I’m sure it is essential viewing for classic horror fans.

London Film Festival review - Free Angela & All Political Prisoners

To most people, Angela Davis is the afro-ed figurehead of the Civil Rights movement whose trial for murder resulted in a worldwide campaign to free her.  Director Shola Lynch’s aim for this biographical documentary is to put some meat onto the bones of this image and flesh out Davis’s story. The result is only semi-successful, but it is still a fascinating look at a strange time.

Angela Davis was an activist and academic who accidentally became the centre of a political controversy when she was appointed a professor at the University of California in 1969. You see, they made the mistake of hiring a communist as a professor of Communism. Davis was fired by the university, and became heavily involved in a campaign to free the Soledad Brothers, three African-American prisoners accused of killing a white guard. Then in August 1970, the younger brother of one of the Soledad Brothers attempted to hold a judge hostage to negotiate the release of the prisoners, resulting in a shootout which left the judge and several others dead. The guns used in this crime were all in Davis’s name, so she went into hiding and ended up on the FBI’s most wanted list. She was later found and put on trial for first degree murder. The campaign to free Angela spread across the world, with children in East Germany sending sacks of letters of support.  She was cleared of all charges in 1972.

The film goes through these events, looking at how and why Davis became radicalised, and her feelings about the strange events of 1969 to 1972. Davis, who has been reluctant to talk about this time, is interviewed extensively, and it is great to hear from the lady herself. Archive footage is well used, and some scenes are recreated, with Davis’s niece playing her.

Unfortunately the details of the case are not explored in that much detail, making the film slightly confusing. I suppose the events are confusing in themselves (the kidnap of the judge strikes me as a very strange plan), but it would have been good to hear more about the evidence for and against Davis’s involvement. It would also have been interesting to look at what Davis has done since she was freed. It is mentioned that she has continued to campaign for prison reform, but there are no details of her life post-1972. These are the things which she wishes to be known for, rather than her arrest and trial, so it seems strange to leave them out.

With these additions, this could have been the definitive portrait of one of the key female figures in the Civil Rights movement. As it is, it is an engaging examination of a time when it seemed as if American society was teetering on the edge of anarchy.

London Film Festival review - West of Memphis

The West Memphis Three

Director Amy Berg does not shy away from heavy subjects. Her first film, the Oscar-nominated Deliver Us From Evil, examined the cover up of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church.  This, her second feature, examines the murder of three eight-year-old boys in Arkansas in 1993, and the litany of mistakes and lies involved in the ensuing investigation and trials. West of Memphis is an exquisitely detailed look at how justice can remain elusive, and it is likely to make you very, very angry at the unfairness of it all.

When the bodies of three little boys – Stevie Branch, Christopher Byers and Michael Moore – were found naked in a ditch in May 1993, the police believed that the murders had been part of a satanic ritual. Three teenage boys – Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley, known as the West Memphis Three - were arrested. Misskelley, who has learning difficulties, confessed after a long interrogation, and implicated the other two boys. At the trial, witnesses came forward attesting that they had bragged about killing the little boys as part of an occult rite. In the end Echols was sentenced to death, and the other two were sentenced to life in prison.

Berg examines the “facts” presented at trial in detail. The level of incompetence on display and the wilful disregard for the truth is astonishing. But this documentary is not just about bashing the police or the American criminal justice system. It also looks at the effect of the crime on the families involved, adding to the emotional impact. The mother of Stevie Branch is interviewed extensively, and her words are painful to watch.

Despite the bleakness of the horrific events and their aftermath, there is some light in this film.  A huge campaign was launched in support of the West Memphis Three. People marched carrying banners, concerts were held, and celebrities got involved – really involved. Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam and Henry Rollins of Black Flag campaigned for over a decade, becoming friends of Damien Echols. Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson and his wife Fran Walsh (producers of this film) paid for private detectives, forensic experts and DNA tests. In this case, people power ultimately made the difference.

West of Memphis is a relentless look at how a triple tragedy became a sextuple one, and how hope can stay alive in the face of tremendous odds.  I urge you to see it.

Film review - The Dictator

I’ve been a fan of Sacha Baron Cohen since the Eleven O’Clock Show, where Ali G premiered and showed up a lot of posh people. When his power to make people say what they really think was combined with the genius of four Seinfeld writers, magic ensued in the form of Borat. After Borat and Bruno, Baron Cohen is now too famous to go undercover, and so he has to fall back on purely scripted situations. Unfortunately the script of The Dictator is patchy, revolting, and not funny enough.

The film follows Admiral General Aladeen (Baron Cohen), the all-powerful leader of the oil-rich African state of Wadiya. Just think of him as Borat, but in charge. This is a man who has everything he wants. He is also easier to upset than Stalin, executing all those who even look at him in the wrong way. On a trip to the United Nations in New York, his scheming uncle (Sir Ben Kingsley) tries to kill him and replaces him with a double. Alone and penniless, Aladeen is taken in by earnest health food store owner Zoey (Anna Faris).

The first half of the film set in Wadiya satirises Gaddafi and his ilk perfectly. The second half in New York, however, doesn’t live up to this good start. The plot is thin and badly sketched out, which would be fine if there were lots of good comic set pieces to keep us entertained. However, I can only think of one genuinely funny bit amongst a lot of disgusting ones. The only film I could relate it to is Freddy Got Fingered, but without the surreal heights of Tom Green’s magnum opus. Anyone who has seen Freddy Got Fingered knows that the comparison could never be complimentary.

I am shocked that the director Larry Charles and Baron Cohen’s co-writers Alec Berg, David Mandel and Jeff Schaffer – the brains behind Seinfeld¸ Clerks: The Animated Series and Eurotrip (I’m not adding that to the list as a joke, it’s a hugely enjoyable film – Scotty doesn’t know!) could create something with so many poorly conceived moments.

There are some lines that really nail American’s attitude to the Middle East and the Middle East’s attitude to Israel, but not really enough to make it worth the ticket price.

Film review - Mirror Mirror

The trailer for this film looked beyond awful – one of the dwarves actually said “Snow who? Snow way!” I was willing to give it a chance, however, as The Fall’s trailer was terrible but the film was great. Apparently Tarsem Singh’s films don’t trailerise well.  In actuality this reimagining of the Snow White tale is stunningly beautiful, frothy and fun.

Snow White (Lily Collins) has been held prisoner in her own castle by her wicked stepmother (Julia Roberts). When she falls in love with a handsome prince (Armie Hammer) that the queen wants for herself, she is banished into the woods. There she meets seven bandits of restricted growth who show her how to fight for her kingdom.

The storyline is quite simple and although it deviates from the original (Snow White sword fighting etc.), it doesn’t feel revolutionary in any way. What it is, however, is enjoyable, with good performances and a script full of nice touches. Julia Roberts is deliciously over the top, Lily Collins is cute as a button and Armie Hammer is suitably pompous and dimwitted. Nathan Lane also does a good little turn as the evil queen’s henchman, and it is nice to see Danny Woodburn (Mickey from Seinfeld) as one of the dwarves.

What really makes the film special, though, is the art direction and the costume design in particular. This was designer Eiko Ishioka’s final film, and she managed to surpass her work on Singh’s The Fall. All the clothes are exquisite – the massive dresses are sumptuous and detailed, in rich colours.

Mirror Mirror won’t change your life, but for all little (and big) princesses out there it is a delightful confection.

Film review - The Avengers

It has taken five films to get to this point – the backstories of the Hulk, Iron Man, Thor and Captain America have all been fleshed out separately and now they are to be brought together to form a superhero gang. Somehow it still takes this film a while to get going, but when it does it really soars.

Loki, Thor’s adopted brother, comes to Earth and steals the Tesseract (a magical power cube) from S.H.I.E.L.D (a powerful espionage agency). S.H.I.E.L.D’s leader Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) gathers together some of the world’s greatest heroes to retrieve the Tesseract and defeat Loki’s army of aliens.

The lengthy set up before the big battle involves a lot of waiting around on S.H.I.E.L.D’s hellicarrier, but luckily the audience is waiting around with some great characters and a script by Joss Whedon. The comic tone set by the Iron Man films continues here, and Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark is still a hoot. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) is hilariously serious, and Captain America (Chris Evans) is also nicely confused by 21st century Earth. Even Scarlett Johansson isn’t awful as the Black Widow, doing a lot of nice double crossing.

The final battle is spectacular, if a little long. A huge amount of destruction takes place as the aliens attack Manhatten (which will always be less fun to watch than it was pre-2001), with the Hulk, Iron Man and Thor doing the heavy lifting, while the Black Widow and Hawkeye basically lend moral support.

Out of all the preceding films, Thor was the most silly, and The Avengers unfortunately uses that film’s main villain. Not that Tom Hiddleston isn’t good as Loki, or that the other possible villains are realistic and sensible, it’s just that after the first Avengers film we’ve already had a Norse god leading an army of angry aliens. Where do you go from here?

All in all the first Avengers film is certainly worth the price of admission – great one-liners married with decent action and excellent performances. Frivilous fun for superhero fans.

Film review - The Pirates! In An Adventure With Scientists

Aardman Animation’s first 3D film is a strange tale of plundering on the high seas. Although fun, it is not quite rollicking enough to be a classic.

Set in an imaginary version of 1837 where piracy is still a problem and every famous person from the 19th century is alive and in their prime, this is a surreal take on the popular pirate story. The film follows the Pirate Captain (voiced by Hugh Grant) and his band of “say what you see”-named pirates (the Pirate with Gout, the Albino Pirate, and – my favourite – the Suprisingly Curvaceous Pirate) as he tries to win the Pirate of the Year competition. On the way they meet a young Charles Darwin and have a run in with Queen Victoria, who really hates pirates.

Aardman films always have a lot of charm, and again The Pirates! has loads of little details – both in the backgrounds and the script – that firmly show its British roots and elevate it above the rest. The trouble is that the story and the characters just aren’t that memorable.