Art-House Dramas:
Plot
Summary: One day, seemingly randomly, Joe is kidnapped and locked in a
solitary room. He spends twenty years in the room and then he is released. Now
obsessed with vengeance, Joe makes it his mission to find out who kidnapped him
and why. Filmmakers: At first glance, this
seems like a strange project for Spike Lee to be taking on, but once and a
while he leaves his usual work to make more of a Hollywood-like thriller (Inside Man
for example). He is working with composer Roque Banos (Evil
Dead), brilliant cinematographer Sean Bobbitt (The
Place Beyond the Pines), and production designer Sharon Seymour
(Argo).
Cast: The film stars Josh Brolin
and co-stars Elizabeth
Olson and Sharlto
Copley. Samuel
L. Jackson, Hannah
Simone, Hannah
Ware, Michael
Imperioli, Rami
Malek, Lance
Reddick, Max
Casella, and James Ransone
feature in support. Expectations: Probably
everyone’s initial reaction to this film is: “wait, what, why does this need to
exist?” And that feels very valid. Chan-wook Park’s Oldboy is
incredible, and it is hard to imagine that Spike Lee will be able to bring
anything warranting a remake to the material. And yet, this film has some
interesting aspects. Lee is capable of doing great work (though he seems to
mostly miss the mark these days), and he is working with a good crew and a
sneakily great cast. Maybe there is no reason for this remake to exist, but it
does and surprisingly there is some potential for it to be more than just a
waste of everyone’s time. I would say it even looks kind of cool. Trailer: Here.
Plot
Summary: The life and times of Nelson Mandela – from childhood in a
rural village through to his inauguration as South Africa’s first
democratically elected President. Filmmakers:
Coming from a background of British television, director Justin Chadwick has
made two previous feature films, and neither is particularly good (but neither
is terrible either). He is working with composer Alex Heffes (who
worked with Chadwick on The First
Grader), cinematographer Lol Crawley (Four Lions),
and production designer Johnny Breedt
(Hotel
Rwanda). Cast: The film stars Idris Elba as
Nelson Mandela, and features Naomie Harris
in support. Expectations: Mandela: Long Walk
to Freedom looks like it should provide Idris Elba with a great platform to
show off his acting talent (something fans of The
Wire and Luther
know all too well), and may even garner him an Oscar nomination. But, as a
narrative film, I am a bit skeptical of Justin Chadwick’s ability to make a
great film. It does look like a good drama, but I still have my doubts. I hope
I am proved wrong. Trailer: Here.
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