“If I get a
script I like and the main character is described as 32 or 33 years of age, I
tell my agent I’m too old for the lead and he says, 'Don’t worry, it will be
changed.' And a couple of months later the same script comes back but the
character is described as in his mid-fifties. That’s quite funny." – Liam Neeson
Showing posts with label Scoot McNairy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Scoot McNairy. Show all posts
Thursday, 27 February 2014
Sunday, 21 October 2012
Argo
I have always respected Ben Affleck as a director in comparison to Ben Affleck the actor. Most movies where Affleck has been in the lead role have exposed his weakness. I can think of probably one movie where his performance as an actor was quite controlled and well executed – Valentines Day (if I remember correctly).
But the minute our man dons the director’s hat, he seems to be much better placed. I thought The Town was slow but it was quite well made. There was an effort to paint a picture with each character and the overall story. Ditto with Gone Baby Gone. Both were very intense movies.
I have heard that both Affleck and Matt Damon – the young guard of Hollywood about 20 years back are great thinkers when it comes upto cinema. Screenplay and direction. With Argo, Affleck has definitely taken himself to the next level – both as a director as well as an actor.
Cora Lijek (Clea DuVall), Mark Lijek (Christopher Denham), Kathy Stafford (Kerry Bishé), Joe Stafford (Scooty McNairy), Bob Anders (Tate Donovan) and Lee Schatz (Rory Cochrane) owe their lives to one Antonio Joseph Mendez (Ben Affleck). Tony was or should I say is an exfiltration expert of sorts – someone who specializes in getting people out a particular troubled country and take them back home.
Why does he need to do that because the 6 of them are holed up @ the house of the Canadian Ambassador to Iran – Ken Taylor (Victor Garber). This is after the revolutionary Iranians take the US Embassy Hostage on the 4th November 1979. Our 6 diplomats escape just in the nick of time and find their way to Ambassador Taylor’s house after being rejected by a couple of other embassies.
Along with Lester Siegel (Alan Arkin) and Academy award winner John Chambers (John Goodman), Tony hatches a plot to make a sci-fi movie – Argo. It would be set in a middle eastern location. To ensure that there are doubts which creep up, the team does everything that a movie maker would have been expected to do from the script to the director to press releases to posters – the works.
Argo differs from most other espionage movies on two major counts. Firstly there is a distinct addition of humour that makes it easy to watch. There are almost no action sequences but enough and more of edge of the seat drama. Other than these 2 aspects there is a stunning start with a background of the revolution which grabs you by the scruff of your neck and pushes you down to your seat.
Great use of fade in and fade outs at the appropriate moments. Some really good camera work there. The use of 2 audio tracks overlapping like when the Iranians are proclaiming that severe action will be taken on the hostages and the Argo screenplay reading is being done for the press – superb!!! The screenplay is fantastic.
My prediction – Argo should get nominated in the top 10 of the year. It would get a nomination for screenplay and just maybe (an outside chance based on the Hollywood movies that I have seen this year) a nomination for direction for Affleck. If none of these work out… Argo Fuck Yourself (watch to understand). 8 on 10.
Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1537319449/
And read the article on the Canadian Caper http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Caper
But the minute our man dons the director’s hat, he seems to be much better placed. I thought The Town was slow but it was quite well made. There was an effort to paint a picture with each character and the overall story. Ditto with Gone Baby Gone. Both were very intense movies.
I have heard that both Affleck and Matt Damon – the young guard of Hollywood about 20 years back are great thinkers when it comes upto cinema. Screenplay and direction. With Argo, Affleck has definitely taken himself to the next level – both as a director as well as an actor.
Cora Lijek (Clea DuVall), Mark Lijek (Christopher Denham), Kathy Stafford (Kerry Bishé), Joe Stafford (Scooty McNairy), Bob Anders (Tate Donovan) and Lee Schatz (Rory Cochrane) owe their lives to one Antonio Joseph Mendez (Ben Affleck). Tony was or should I say is an exfiltration expert of sorts – someone who specializes in getting people out a particular troubled country and take them back home.
Why does he need to do that because the 6 of them are holed up @ the house of the Canadian Ambassador to Iran – Ken Taylor (Victor Garber). This is after the revolutionary Iranians take the US Embassy Hostage on the 4th November 1979. Our 6 diplomats escape just in the nick of time and find their way to Ambassador Taylor’s house after being rejected by a couple of other embassies.
Along with Lester Siegel (Alan Arkin) and Academy award winner John Chambers (John Goodman), Tony hatches a plot to make a sci-fi movie – Argo. It would be set in a middle eastern location. To ensure that there are doubts which creep up, the team does everything that a movie maker would have been expected to do from the script to the director to press releases to posters – the works.
Argo differs from most other espionage movies on two major counts. Firstly there is a distinct addition of humour that makes it easy to watch. There are almost no action sequences but enough and more of edge of the seat drama. Other than these 2 aspects there is a stunning start with a background of the revolution which grabs you by the scruff of your neck and pushes you down to your seat.
Great use of fade in and fade outs at the appropriate moments. Some really good camera work there. The use of 2 audio tracks overlapping like when the Iranians are proclaiming that severe action will be taken on the hostages and the Argo screenplay reading is being done for the press – superb!!! The screenplay is fantastic.
My prediction – Argo should get nominated in the top 10 of the year. It would get a nomination for screenplay and just maybe (an outside chance based on the Hollywood movies that I have seen this year) a nomination for direction for Affleck. If none of these work out… Argo Fuck Yourself (watch to understand). 8 on 10.
Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1537319449/
And read the article on the Canadian Caper http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Caper
Thursday, 11 October 2012
Killing Them Softly
Andrew Dominik has 2 movies as a director before Killing them Softly. One of them had a really really long name called The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (super fodder for a random round of Dumb Charades right?). That one was as long drawn and slow as the name was but it was also extremely carefully made with a lot of attention to detail. Killing Them Softly is no different. And I would assume that his first movie – Chopper – would have been the same.
Killing Them Softly is the story of one Jackie Cogan (Brad Pitt), a hired killer typically used by a surprisingly very organized mafia. So organized are the mafia that they have a representative for something like a board of directors who take specific calls through proper consideration – in other words, there are very few decisions that are actually taken. They are more of a figurehead.
Jackie is the right hand man of Dillon (Sam Shepard) who is currently unavailable to do the dirty work. Whats the dirty work? Doing away with Johnny Amato (Vincent Curatola) and Markie Trattman (Ray Liotta) along with their 2 bit cronies Frankie (Scoot McNairy) and Russel (Bill Mendelsohn).
Why does this have to be done? Because the four of them are responsible for robbing money from locally arranged mafia run card games. Who has lost money? Only those who were playing at the time but if not handled, the repercussions on the mafia would be huge – A risk that no one can afford to take.
So we go through a painfully slow 97 minutes where the entire story unfolds piece by piece backed with a background score that is not quite a score but very interestingly pieced audio clips of the 2008 campaign of President Obama and several clips of the financial melt-down. Very very quirky but then that’s Andrew Dominik for you in one word – quirky. After a while it actually grows on you.
One of the aspects that really will not go un-noticed would be the cinematography. There is a particular sequence where Frankie and Russell are having a conversation where everytime Russell’s point of view is shown pretty much like you would see something when you are really doped. Extremely well done I must say.
Overall, a very slow movie and as mentioned earlier, very painfully crafted. If that’s not your cup of tea then I suggest you strongly avoid it. As such it doesn’t have too much to be seen on the big screen. You can watch it on DVD. But it doesn’t take away from it, the fact that it is a very good movie indeed. 7 on 10.
Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi3931415065/
Killing Them Softly is the story of one Jackie Cogan (Brad Pitt), a hired killer typically used by a surprisingly very organized mafia. So organized are the mafia that they have a representative for something like a board of directors who take specific calls through proper consideration – in other words, there are very few decisions that are actually taken. They are more of a figurehead.
Jackie is the right hand man of Dillon (Sam Shepard) who is currently unavailable to do the dirty work. Whats the dirty work? Doing away with Johnny Amato (Vincent Curatola) and Markie Trattman (Ray Liotta) along with their 2 bit cronies Frankie (Scoot McNairy) and Russel (Bill Mendelsohn).
Why does this have to be done? Because the four of them are responsible for robbing money from locally arranged mafia run card games. Who has lost money? Only those who were playing at the time but if not handled, the repercussions on the mafia would be huge – A risk that no one can afford to take.
So we go through a painfully slow 97 minutes where the entire story unfolds piece by piece backed with a background score that is not quite a score but very interestingly pieced audio clips of the 2008 campaign of President Obama and several clips of the financial melt-down. Very very quirky but then that’s Andrew Dominik for you in one word – quirky. After a while it actually grows on you.
One of the aspects that really will not go un-noticed would be the cinematography. There is a particular sequence where Frankie and Russell are having a conversation where everytime Russell’s point of view is shown pretty much like you would see something when you are really doped. Extremely well done I must say.
Overall, a very slow movie and as mentioned earlier, very painfully crafted. If that’s not your cup of tea then I suggest you strongly avoid it. As such it doesn’t have too much to be seen on the big screen. You can watch it on DVD. But it doesn’t take away from it, the fact that it is a very good movie indeed. 7 on 10.
Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi3931415065/
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