Hide and Seek
Directed by: John Polson
Starring: Robert DeNiro, Dakota Fanning
Rated: R for frightening sequences and violence.
Alfred Hitchcock once famously said that no one is afraid of a gunshot, but are always afraid in the anticipation of the gun shot. Filmmakers, such as M. Night Shyamalan, have been extremely successful in getting us to fear the anticipation, while most horror directors simply get us (or try to get us) to fear the gun shot, itself. It takes a truly great film for us to fear both the anticipation and the gunshot, which is exactly what the film Hide and Seek does, making it a truly frightening experience from start to finish. The story follows David Calloway (played by the brilliant Robert DeNiro), a widowed husband who decides to focus on being a full-time dad after his young daughter (played by the just-as-brilliant Dakota Fanning) witnesses the suicide of her mother. Despite his efforts to give Emily a fresh start, David soon discovers that Emily’s new “imaginary” friend, whom she calls Charlie, is more than Emily’s new playmate; he’s bent on turning their worlds upside down. While the performances of DeNiro and Fanning are the most obvious strength of the film, Hide and Seek is truly magnificent on several scales; Dariusz Wolski, the cinematographer for the Pirates films and Tim Burton’s new DP, enhances the creepiness factor with his slow pans and full frames. John Ottoman’s score accents the jump scenes, yet never distracts us from the story. Even newbie director John Polson, in Hitchcock-like fashion, seems to know when to make us jump. Although a R-rated film, Hide and Seek is unlike the formulaic grotesque imagery of modern horror films (ala Saw VI). It's great to see a film that truly understands suspense; taking things that we should normally find comfort in (little children, dolls, police officers, neighbors, pictures, and the game “hide and seek”) and making them truly terrifying without resorting to blood and guts, like that of a slasher-film. Don’t try to hide from this movie; it’s simply too scary to miss.
Defiance
Directed by: Edward Zwick
Starring: Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber, Jamie Bell, Alexa Davalos
Rated: R for violence and language.
Amidst the stories from World War II, one never hears the story of Tuvia Bielski, who protected over a thousand Jews in occupied Belarus from 1941-1945. Likewise, amidst the storm of Oscar films this past winter, one never heard of the movie Defiance, the retelling of Bielski’s story. This is truly unfortunate, because both the movie and the story are inspiring, and worthy of one’s attention. Directed and adapted by Edward Zwick, Defiance is a lot more about the subtext than the actual story. Sure, it boasts the action of a WWII epic, and counters it with the survival aspects of movies like The Great Escape, but Defiance is not about action or survival; it centers on the internal consequences of these events. While trying to keep a sense of humanity in an inhumane time, Defiance brilliantly documents the different responses to the war. While the camp struggles with issues of morality, faith, and the value of human life, the stoic Tuvia Bielski (Daniel Craig) struggles to find the leadership necessary to control the instability of the group. Zus Bielski (a terrific performance from Liev Schreiber) tries to balance is thirst for blood and revenge with his responsibility to the others, while the third brother, Asael Bielski (an encouraging performance from Jamie Bell), is forced to grow up rather quickly in order to become the co-leader that his brothers need. As incredible as the story and themes are, at times, the film can be too much; the first act is nothing but rushed plot, which then slows down once we get to the story and issues Zwick wishes to tackle, causing the pacing of the edits and scenes to feel rather unbalanced. But, like Zwick’s other films (Blood Diamond, Last Samurai, Glory), these infractions don’t take too much from the movie, and Defiance is still a simply inspiring tale. It forces one to understand that despite your environment or situation, integrity and humanity, in the face of suffering and inhumanity, is more than an act of defiance; it’s the way we were meant to live.
No comments:
Post a Comment