Review: The Social Network

Its weird to think that a few years ago there was no Facebook, no updates, no liking, no tagging people pictures but nowadays everybody seems to be doing it. It seems inevitable then that a film about the website's creator, Mark Zuckerberg, would be released sooner or later. Adapted from the book 'The Accidental Billionaire', 'The Social Network' has good pedigree as it is directed by David Fincher and adapted by West Wing creator Aaron Sorkin. The non-liner plot structure flicks between two legal battles that Zuckeberg is having one with his former best friend and Facebook co-creator Eduardo Saverin who wants his credits back on the website and the other with rowing twin brothers Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss who claim that Zuckerberg stole the idea for Facebook from them. The whole creation of Facebook, which started when Zuckerberg didn't take his break-up with his girlfriend very well, is all told in flashback. Zuckerberg is never portrayed as a particularly nice character but at the same time Sorkin and Fincher and always keen to point out why he did what he did whether it be through jealousy or through influence. The influence comes via Napster creator Sean Parker who spots a good idea when he sees one but at the same time wants to get the level-headed Eduardo out of the way and concentrate on getting through to Mark. Through Sean's involvement Eduardo is screwed out of the Facebook phenomenon and wants revenge and that's where the legal issues come in.

At first I found the plot structure of The Social Network a little jarring as I wasn't quite sure who it was suing Zuckerberg and why. However, after I fully immersed myself in the movie, I found myself really rather enjoying it. Jesse Eisenberg was a great choice to play Zuckerberg as he looks very nerdy but at the same time is a strong actor who is able to sink his teeth into some of the less attractive parts of Zuckerberg's character. Although he does some truly awful things we are able to sympathise with him in a way and that's partly due to Eisenberg who makes Zuckerberg seem like a real human being. Andrew Garfield's Eduardo is the film's heart really as Eduardo is a geniunely nice guy and sticking by Mark through most of the film he reveals himself to be a true friend. Justin Timberlake also does well as Sean Parker, perhaps the film's only real villain, he combines an easy charm with some real talent when we see the darker side of Parker's psyche. Armie Hammer is also great doubling as the Winklevoss twins he is able to make each of them a little different and has the air of haughty authority down. However the real star of the film is Aaron Sorkin whose script is full of humour and character. From the opening scene in which Zuckerberg is dumped, Sorkin gives us his trademark snappy fast-paced dialogue which fans of The West Wing will be used to. One scene in particular in which the twins confront the President of Harvard about Mark's website reminded me of several scenes from the Washington-based drama.

There are a couple of very minor flaws, firstly that most of the film is set indoors and it does feel very claustrophobic from time to time. And also that this is a very male-dominated film the only real female characters are, soon-to-be-Girl-With-The-Dragon-Tatoo, Rooney Mara as Mark's ex-girlfriend and Rashida Jones as co-council during the legal scenes. These are small quibbles because in the end The Social Network is possibly the best written film of the year so far and must surely be up for some gold come Oscar time.

Review: Made in Dagenham

Seven years ago Nigel Cole made a film about a real life story starring a predominantly female cast of known British actresses, the film was called Calendar Girls and went onto be a massive hit even spawning its own West End show spin-off. Now Cole is back with another film based on a real-life story starring a predominantly female cast and that film is Made in Dagenham which concerns the year in which the women in the Ford Motors Factory in Dagenham went on strike and demanded equal pay. Like in Calendar Girls, Cole is interested on us getting to know the central female characters and at the film's heart is Sally Hawkins' Rita O'Grady, a family woman who is intially reluctant to stand-up for the women but as the film goes on she begins to find her own voice. There is also Geraldine James' Connie a more mature member of the workforce whose husband is suffering from post-traumatic stress after servingin World War 2. As the strike goes on things begin to get tougher especially for Rita as her husband also is forced out of work when the Ford motor plant shuts down. The Government and the Ford company both start to get involved, firstly Ford sends the tough Robert Tooley over to deal with the women and then trade minister Barbara Castle is ordered to sort the struggle out. Along the way there is a lot of tragedy but a lot of heartfelt moments as well as the women try to achieve what they set out to.

There is a debate to be made on whether Made in Dagenham is too broad and doesn't focuse enough on its topic. However I believe that if the subject had been adapted into a grittier picture then not as many people would've gone to see the film and that would've been a shame as there's a lot to like here. The central characters are all well drawn most notably Rita and Connie as well as Rita's husband Eddie, a man of simple pleasures who doesn't quite understand why his wife's doing what she's doing. Even the smaller characters get their moments for example Rosamund Pike's Lisa is a well educated woman who is married to the Ford plant boss and is therefore confined to the kitchen and isn't allowed to give her views on most topics. That's not to say that everybody gets a fair deal, Andrea Riseborough's Brenda only seems to exist in order to have sex with variuos menfolk and then laugh dirtly about it, and an actress of her standing deserves better. The performances are top-notch all around from Sally Hawkins as Rita down to Roger Lloyd Pack as Connie's husband special mention has to go to Richard Schiff as the long-in-the-tooth Tooley who thinks the women can be handled quite easily and steps in to show the British how its done.

Overall I think Cole has improved on Calendar Girls as there's a lot more meat in the tale of the Dagenham girls. He gets the tone between comedy and tragedy dead on here and there are a couple of moments where I generally teared up and also some bits where I couldn't stop laughing. It may be a little bit cheesy and a bit broad but Made in Dagenham is one of those films that just makes you feel-good and also is able to tell the tale of a very plucky group of women.

Review: Buried

2010 seems to be the year of films which are set in small confined spaces. Firstly we had the tank-based drama Lebanon followed by the lift-set Devil and now we have Buried focusing on Paul Conroy, a contractor in Iraq who has been Buried alive in a coffin. And it is the coffin that is the setting for the entire 90 minutes or so of the film and it is Paul who is the solitary figure on screen. The film's premise centres around Paul finding out firstly why he's in the coffin and secondly how he can get out of it. He has been left with a mobile phone, a lighter and luckily a pencil and some water. While in the coffin he is contacted several times by his captors and has to quickly try and respond to their demands in order to secure his freedom. This leads him on a wild goose chase phoning his family, friends, the FBI, the CIA, the media and the company he is working for.

Out of all the films I've seen this year, Buried is surely one of the most original. The concept of spending 90 minutes in a coffin with only Ryan Reynolds for company is the stuff of nightmares luckily the time passed pretty quickly. Reynolds is a revelation here proving that he has a life outside romantic or puerile comedy films. He portrays Paul as the every-man who is just in Iraq on a routine job and isn't quite sure why he's the one they're after. He works well in a very confined space to put across a man who after a while knows there's little help of escape and does it very well. The film also has moments of thrills most notably a scene involving a snake and the tension is upped in the film's very last moments which will leave you on the edge of your seats. The script also covers such topics as foreign relations, terrorist negoitations and corporate betrayal but never offers any real political views on any of them. Buried isn't by any means a perfect film but, if you can stomach it, its a very compelling and interesting film if not one that will ever stand up to repeat viewings.

Review: The Town

After spending several years in the wilderness, Ben Affleck's reinvention of himself is almost complete. After directing the superb Gone Baby Gone and putting in an impressive turn in last year's State of Play he takes triple duty in writing, acting and directing his Boston-based crime thriller The Town. Affleck plays Doug McCray who, along with Jermey Renner's James, is a career criminal and the film kicks off with a bank roberry. It is during that robbery that Doug meets bank teller Claire, later they begin a romance with her unware of his true identity. Doug's relationship with Claire makes him reconsider his life of crime but he is coerced into two more jobs firstly by James and then by the sinister crimelord 'The Florist'. Doug's life is further complicated by F.B.I. agent Adam Frawley who is on Doug's case right from the opening frame. As the final roberry takes place Frawley realises this is his last chance to catch Doug so he uses some underhanded tactics in order to get his man.

The Town is an enjoyable, if uneven, crime film that harks back to such classics as The French Connection. The audience is drawn in straight away thanks to the opening robbery being so gripping however the pace slows down afterwards as we explore Doug's relationships with Claire, James and James' sister who is Doug's sometimes girlfriend. However from the second robbery onwards the tension builds up as the cat and mouse story between Frawley and Doug really kicks into play and the final set piece around Fenway Park is truly spectacular. However there are some cliched and clunky moments throughout most notably the 'criminal who wants to leave the world behind' and the Shawshank Redemption-esque ending. Ben Affleck gives a competent performance from both sides of the camera because of the script he never makes Doug a one-note character and instead offers us a thorough insight into his life. Jeremy Renner is amazing as the slightly sinister James who on the surface is tough-as-nails but at the same time has very strong loyalties. Pete Posslethwaite is truly terrifying in his few scenes as The Florist while Rebecca Hall moves even closer to becoming a Hollywood leading lady. However it is Jon Hamm who gets the scenery chewing award as he truly relishes some of his more over-the-top lines as FBI Agent Frawley. The only week link is Gossip Girl's Blake Lively, as James' sister Krista, her attempt at a Boston accent makes Ray Winstone in The Departed look like a Boston native. And because she's really trying hard to 'act' its hard to understand anything that she actually says.

Despite its flaws The Town is a very good piece of film-making with all round decent performances from its impressive ensemble cast. If only the ending had been a little less clunky it may have been one of the films of the year but instead it's just a good honest film.

Review: Winter's Bone

Every year around autumn and winter time, there always seems to be at least one performance that heralds a brand new acting talent on the scene. Last year we had both Carey Mulligan in An Education and Gabourey Sidibe in Precious. This year the honour goes to Jennifer Lawrence who portrays Ree a young girl from the Ozark mountains who has to go on a journey to find her deadbeat father. Ree has basically become both mother and father to her two younger siblings since her father's disappearance she is their cook, protector and confedent. So when she finds out that their father has put the house up for colaterall for his bail and has since gone missing she sets out to uncover the secrets behind his disappearance. This leads her to battle the community head on as she runs into trouble thanks to the close-nit secrets that our being kept. Her only ally is her slightly dodgy uncle who wants to her help keep the family together.

As I already mentioned the most positive thing about the film is Lawrence's performance. After playing a young Charlize Theron in last year's underrated The Burning Plain, Winter's Bone is definitely her ticket to the big time. Lawrence gives Ree a toughness rarely scene in female characters of her age but at the same time she makes it clear that she is still a girl. At one point Ree goes to the army so she can earn money to keep the house and her siblings safe, however once she finds out she can't have the money straight away she starts to crack. The other interesting performance is from John Hawkes as uncle Teardrop the slightly unhinged protector of Ree who gives an unpredictable and completely watchable turn. However, thanks to Ree's trek, the brutal surroundings of the Ozark mountains becomes its own character every small hut and its inhabitants providing more obstacles for the young heroine. Winter's Bone isn't an easy watch and it is fairly slow but if you stick with it then you'll find a film that is both compelling and breathtaking in its scale and its performances. I think we'll be hearing Lawrence's name a lot more after the award's season.

Review: Tamara Drewe

When you think of comic book movies you immediatedly think superhero or more recently the geeky postmodernist Kick Ass or Scott Pilgrim. However your hardly ever picture the English countryside and a sexy central heroine with a penchant for small jean shorts. But that's exactly what Tamara Drewe is, adapted from Posy Simmonds' graphic novel it stars Gemma Arterton as the titular heroine a journalist who has returned to her small Dorset village. complete with a new nose. in order to sell her mother's house. While there Tamara has to deal with romantic complications with her ex Andy and also with Ben a rock drummer who she interviews and then ends up dating. Running parallel to this story is that of the local writer's retreat run by the comely Beth and her philandeirng mystery novelist husband Nicholas who also has a history with Tamara. To complicate matters further local girl Jody, who is Ben's biggest fan, sets out to sabotage Tamara's relationship with her idol and ropes in her best friend who is also Andy's niece to mess with Tamara. What follows is an utterly hilarious comedy of errors as people get the wrong end of the stick, have a lot of sex and at the end of the day there is kind of a happy ending.

I have to say I really enjoyed Tamara Drewe thanks mainly due to its comic tone. As it is adapted from a graphic novel the characters are very broadly drawn but that's part of the film's appeal. The whole film is also very clever as it weaves in literary references, thanks mainly to the writer's retreat, and in particular Thomas Hardy as one of the writers is composing a non-fiction work about Hardy. But personally I thought the whole thing had the tone of a Shakespearian comedy - the lovers forced together, the various obstacles they have to overcome and the two mischevious characters who are messing around with the other players' lives that only the audience are aware of. Gemma Arterton is perfectly fine in the lead role she asserts her sexuality when needs be and also displays a sort of melancholy about her past. As Arterton gives something for the males to look at I am also reliably informed that Luke Evans, who portrays the strapping Andy, is a 'bit of alright'. However the more compelling performances come from Tasmin Grieg and Roger Allam as Beth and Nicholas she is incredibly moving as the much cheated-on wife and he is hilarious as the philanderer. Dominic Cooper also gives a very good turn as the vain and bored rocker who has a very strange relationship wtih his dogThe two young actresses playing the girls are also brilliant giving the whole thing a lot of childish humour. Overall a funny, love story to the countryisde with some interesting performances and some nice shots of Dorset.

Review: Piranha

Certain times films come along that totally revolutionise the way we see the medium and can only be defined as ground-breaking. Thankfully Piranha, originally shown in 3D, is not one of those films instead it is a complete tounge-in-cheek homage to the original Piranha franchise and other B-movies. The flimsy plot concerns a small beach community which is invaded every year for Spring Break in particular it looks at the female sherrif and her teenage son Jake who is desperately in love with a girl-next-door type. Jake ends up becoming a photographer for a slezy girls-gone-wild type director who also manages to convince his would-be-love to come with them. As you can probably guess from the title, tragedy strikes when prehistoric piranhas start to swarm around the sea and gobble up all the horny students and low-lives. The rest of the film is full of screaming, escaping and severed penises as the sherrif must try and keep her family safe and try and defeat the piranhas.

Unlike the last B-Movie homage, Snakes on a Plane, Piranha doesn't take itself too seriously and instead focuses on the flesh and the death. This is evident from the first scene in which Richard Dreyfuss basically copies his scene from Jaws as he gobbled up early doors by the piranhas. The performances are great although Elizabeth Shue does a good turn as the sherrif forced to turn hero and Christopher Lloyd hams it up as a fish shop owner. Also present is Jerry O'Connell as the sleazy director who has the honour of having his member bitten off as well as our own Kelly Brook who spends most of the film topless or naked and utters the immortal line 'nice horn'. The only problem is that we already know that the central family will all survive and most of the superfulous characters will get gobbled up luckily that doesn't matter as this is just a fun, guilty pleasure summer flick that never outstays its welcome.