FILM: Elysium
DIRECTOR: Neill Blomkamp
CAST: Matt Damon, Jodie Foster, Sharlto Copley, Alice Braga,
Diego Luna, William Fichtner and Wagner Moura
Set in a futuristic sci-fi environment, Elysium is a tale of a hero’s journey. It’s the story of his motive to survive and how he liberates his brethren.
Cut to year 2159. The world is divided into two sets of people, the haves and the have-nots. The rich and the extremely wealthy live on a pristine man-made space station called Elysium while the rest reside in the overtly congested, chaotic, crime-ridden and polluted Earth.
The stories relating to the luxurious lifestyle and state-of-the-art medical facility on Elysium are interesting. It’s this paradise where every earthling vies to escape to.
Young Max (Matt Damon), living in an orphanage is once told by a nun, “Everyone has a destiny, a purpose to live”. So he promises his girlfriend Frey (Alice Braga) that he would take her to Elysium one day.
But years later, Max, an ex-con, single and separated from Frey is a worker in a factory. Due to an accident, he is exposed to high radiation and now he has only five days to live. The only way he can survive is if he can access Elysium’s medical facilities.
With his life hanging in the balance, he reluctantly takes on a dangerous mission. The only way out is by taking the illegal route which is controlled by local crime lord Spider (Wagner Moura).
The deal between the two is that Max kidnaps a leading industrialist and arms supplier John Carlyle (William Fichtner) so that Spider and his buddies can have control over Elysium, and in return Spider would transport Max to Elysium.
However, things don’t work out as planned. Max soon finds himself on the wrong side of Elysium’s ambitious Secretary of Defense (Jodie Foster) and her local agent on Earth, Krugger (Sharlto Copley) and events go from bad to worse to absurd.
Director Neill Blompkamp’s plot is too convoluted, fragmented and unbelievable. The premise and characters all feel like boring recycled archetypes. Even worse, we get a series of silly and convenient circumstances that manufacture a narrow and equally silly plot of one hero who does what every generic hero does. Also, the key antagonist turns out to be some moronic hack and slash mercenary.
The performances of every character range from engaging, over-the-top to confusing. They deliver whatever is expected of them. While Matt Damon is steadfast and consistent, Jodie Foster’s accent wanders but she makes up for her icy screen presence. Wagner Moura as Spider seems to have promise.
Elysium’s greatest strength is its aesthetic vision of future space-crunched Earth. The opening shot is reminiscent of the cityscape opening of Blade Runner. But unlike Blade Runner, here it is much more rough and gritty, set primarily in harsh daylight and with most of the conflict taking place outdoors.
Also, another irritant is the constant shaky camera work.
Overall, Elysium is a well packaged under-developed film.
FILM: Prisoners
DIRECTOR: Denis Villeneuve
CAST: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Maria Bello, Terrence Howard, Melissa Leo, Paul Dano, Dylan Minnette…
Prisoners is an intense mystery thriller that blurs the line of morality. It is about good and evil, doing what is right and necessary and is layered over a tale of the prey, the predator and the survival of the fittest.
It is a story of abducted kids, their parents’ angst and perseverance in order to find them.
The film begins with Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) reciting the Catholic payer “Our father…” while his teenage son Ralph (Dylan Minnette), shoots down his first hunt, a deer.
This scene explains that god is the reason for every action committed, but paradoxically in the very next scene, in the vehicle on their way back from the hunt, Keller tells his son that in the battle of survival, “It gets to a point where the only thing standing between you and another person is you.”
This lays the foundation to the narration.
It is Thanksgiving Day. Keller Dover, his wife Grace (Maria Bello), son Ralph and six-year-old daughter Anna (Erin Gerasimovich) are having a good time partying along with their neighbours, the Birchs; Franklin and Nancy (Terrence Howard and Viola Davis), their teenage daughter Elizia (Zoe Soul) and Joy (Kyla-Drew Simmons), who is close to Anna’s age.
Suddenly in the middle of the celebrations, Anna and Joy go missing. Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal) pitches in. Alex Wintermann Jones (Paul Dano), a 26-year-old man with the IQ of a 10-year-old, with a worn-out recreational vehicle, is considered a suspect.
Convinced of Alex’s guilt and not depending on god or the law to take its own course, Keller has his own agenda. Desperate to find their daughter, the Birchs too, take a stand with, “We won’t help Keller, but won’t stop him either. God knows where he will lead to.” This act does question ethics.
Jackman gives a solid, unwavering performance, tapping into a sometimes protective, more often frightening fury. His misery and pain, seeing his wife suffer is palpable. Also, one would vacillate while judging him when he lashes out at Alex. Jackman is Keller Dover to the core.
Of the supporting cast, all are notable and convincing. The families are beautifully established and you’ll care about what happens simply because kids are involved. You feel you are seeing real people, reliving their moments.
Apart from the family, it is Melissa Leo as Holly Jones, Alex’s caring aunt, who is impressive and Paul Dano as the conflict ridden Alex for whom your heart would bleed. His performance is extraordinary and restrained, difficult to figure out.
Visually, “Prisoners” is enthralling. Cinematographer Roger Deakins captures the pristine beauty of landscape on outskirts of Pennsylvania during the late autumn and early winter, giving some astounding imagery.
The direction and editing is compact and good. The understated score brilliantly builds ample amounts of suspense.
The script, with its psychological tropes, is spellbinding and slow. It hardly ever meanders making it creepy yet compelling. It has enough punches and evocative moments. Director Denis Villeneuve has the gift that can hook the audience, making this film exceptional.
It definitely is not going to be an easy task to watch this film without questioning your values. (IANS)