Stan and Jack

Isn't this just a great photo? Stanley Kubrick and Jack Nicholson on the set of The Shining.

A Lonely Place to Die

I was genuinely really looking forward to this, the tightly edited trailer really makes the most of the good bits, like any good trailer should do, and promises a great thriller that will deliver on all fronts. ALPTD is set in the Scottish Highlands and sees a group of rock climbers discover a kidnapped infant girl in an underground cell, they attempt an increasingly dangerous and fateful rescue as the kidnappers hunt them across the hillocks and slippery shale. Unfortunately, almost immediately I became distracted by the clunky, sometimes embarrassingly bad and unnatural dialogue which made the characters seem cold and distant from each other. On top of that there was the other immediate distraction in the lack of any believable friendship between them. It seemed to me that the actors had only just met on the morning of the first shoot and bought to mind the friendship between the characters in Shark Night 3D, I'm sure ALPTD was not intended for that same audience.

It's a shame because Melissa George is an excellent actress, working with directors such as Steven Soderbergh and David Lynch, but she didn't have the opportunity or screen-time to shine in this. She would have certainly been able to carry the film with the outstanding support of Sean Harris and Stephen McCole as the psychotic bad guys hunting her across the fens; a chase and showdown between just those three, George attempting to hide and protect the kidnapped infant in the wilderness whilst Harris & McCole tracked her through the crosshairs, shot in a minimal and gritty style would have been a film worth watching. But sadly the antagonists performances were painfully brief and the plot was stymied with an unnecessary inclusion of an Eastern European sub-text. Not to mention the drawn-out finale surrounding the rescue of the infant girl by a private security firm played admirably by Eamonn Walker et al; the near annihilation of a local village procession and a murderous rampage provided the absurd and not-at-all believable climax that the film wasn't calling for.

I get the impression that the Gilbey brothers were like a 'dog with a bone', not wanting to give up any of their precious screenplay and seeing as it was one of them that directed the film they had no real incentive or third-party advice to do so (or none that they were willing to take on board), thus wasting the opportunity of some cracking performances from what should have been a minimal and scaled-down cast and plot that must have been staring them in the face the whole time. There seems to be a general bloated, convoluted amount of padding around what had the potential to be a genuinely exciting and emotional action thriller.

A Lonely Place To Die, 2011. J Gilbey.

Snowtown

From the opening shot Snowtown will grab hold of you with a grip tight enough to squeeze the life out of you. It's incredibly dark and bleak and at times difficult to watch however in its bleakness there is a beauty in the cinematography and some of the most powerful and impressively natural performances you are ever likely to see.

After the hard-hitting introduction of the horrifying subject matter within the first 7 minutes, the story unfolds like a dark, sinister shadow gradually creeping across the screen. Set in a small Australian town in the late 1990s and based around the impoverished lives of a single mother (Elizabeth played by Louise Harris) and her four sons and, more importantly, the company she keeps. Elizabeth regularly hosts meetings where the discussions focus on the problem of local sex-offenders and the lack of any suitable justice, which is where John comes in. John is the self-styled, self-appointed protector of the community, doling out his own sadistic brand of punishment as he sees fit. At first you may find yourself asking whether or not John (played by Daniel Henshall) is a necessary evil, after-all his arrival in the family unit certainly brings a confident and much needed father figure to the home, someone for the brothers to look up to and learn from. However, before long you realise that the evil he has introduced to Jamie's (Lucas Pittaway) life is in many ways far worse, far more terrifying and far more tortuous than the life he was dealing with prior to John's arrival. 

Many of the graphic and violent scenes are as brutal and realistic as the real-life story the film is based on and the only respite you'll get from the at times sadistic imagery are the stunning and beautiful atmospheric shots, sometimes of the landscape or maybe just a calm evening in front of the television. Particularly striking is the imagery of a pet snake pouncing on, then coiling itself around, its prey, very much like John's all consuming control over his 'family' and friends. 

It's hard to believe Snowtown is based on real life events surrounding the infamous murders in a small Australian town in 1999. The film is unflinching and gruesome in its recollection of what took place and it demands our attention; the cold bleak subjects and settings frame the horrifying narrative perfectly whilst the excellent sad and brutal performances from an astounding cast cement Snowtown rightfully at the top of the critics' lists.

Snowtownis available to preorder and I strongly suggest you do so as it is my official selection for the film of the year.

Meek's Cutoff

This is one of my top film recommendations for 2011, released in the UK in April, Directed by Kelly Reichardt.
Set in 1845 the film sees a group of settlers travelling across the Oregon desert who find themselves stranded in the harsh conditions. They are torn between following the advice of Meek, a cock-sure self-styled frontier guide who seems to be leading them on a merry dance, or following their prisoner; a native American AKA the presumed enemy of their people.
The casting is superb, and the central performances from Bruce Greenwood as Meek and Michelle Williams as Emily provide Meek's Cutoff with the conflicting voices of reason and potential insanity. The bleak yet beautiful settings also deserve a mention as they provide the oppressive, omnipotent hand of doom that persistently tightens its grip around the weary, dehydrated travellers' throats.

In a year when the great True Grit was deservedly taking up all the limelight for the whole genre, Meek's Cutoff deserves special recognition.

Don McCullin

Shaped by War: Photographs by Don McCullin
Imperial War Museum: 7 Oct 2011- 15 April 2012
Don McCullin is one of the most important photographers of our generation. For more than 50 years, his uncompromising black and white photographs have shaped our awareness and understanding of modern conflict and its consequences. Shaped by War presents the largest collection of Don McCullin’s work ever seen on public display.

More info

William Eggleston

William Eggleston is an American photographer famous for his ability to make the ordinary seem extraordinary, the mundane appear unsettling. His images grab you with their vivid colour and haunting atmospheres whilst, to my mind there's often the suggestion of something sinister or perhaps lonely and isolated dwelling the shadows throughout much of his work.

Copyright © The Eggleston Trust

You can purchase a selection of his prints from the Egglestone Trust website.

Snowtown

Check out the trailer for Snowtown. Perhaps, the best film of the year.

Eddie Marsan

Check out the trailer for the upcoming film Junkhearts, in which he gives a great performance as a good samaritan. He's a great actor an it's about time he was getting lead roles and being recognised for his talent. Judging from the trailer, it appears to have been shot beautifully and has used some excellent gritty locations.

Also, here's the film poster: