Man on a Ledge

First Hit:  Parts were fun and interesting others just poorly constructed.

At the end of this film, it is all supposed to come together and it does, but it was not satisfying nor did it feel complete.

Nick Cassidy (played by Sam Worthington) is a former cop and in prison because he’s been accused of stealing a $40M diamond from David Englander (played by Ed Harris). However he claims he is innocence and was set-up and wants to make his name right. He attends his father’s funeral and escapes from his guards.

After being in hiding for a few weeks, he checks into an expensive hotel, eats a fancy meal, leaves a note (claiming his innocence) and climbs out on the ledge 21 floors up. While the cops, news people, news people, and public are focused on him from the street below, his brother Joey (played by Jamie Bell) and his brother’s girlfriend Angie (played by Genesis Rodriguez) are breaking into the building across the street actually stealing the diamond. In this way Nick can prove his innocence.

Englander is characterized as someone having some of the arrogance and stupidity of Donald Trump and the controlled focus and untouchable qualities of a mobster. He uses cops as his dirty work guys whom will kill for him at a price.

This is the underlying scenario as the film unfolds as it includes Nick's working partner as one who was dirty as well.

Lastly, the film also has a focus on a police psychologist Lydia Mercer (played by Elizabeth Banks) who just recently lost one of her “jumpers” and is struggling with the pain. Nick specifically asks for her as a way to help her move through her past event.

The film has enough good shots in it to make it very interesting. The overhead, looking over the ledge and Worthington’s ability to make it seem he could have fallen at any moment, was very good. What didn’t work was that it was far too easy to see, and know, which cops were crooked - they even looked crooked. In other words, in some places the movie, had little too much telegraphing of characterizations and situations.

Worthington was strong and believable in his role although the film teetered as not being believable. Harris was a wonderful arrogant ass who felt entitled to his arrogance. Bell was very good as the brother who wanted to do right for his family. Rodriguez was strong, funny, and vulnerable in her role as accomplice and girlfriend. Banks was OK as the psychologist who is charged with talking down a jumper. Edward Burns, played another police person charged with talking down jumpers and I didn’t think this was of his better work. He seemed to not have a mind of his own and wasn’t convincing why he changed to support Banks role. Pablo F. Fenjves wrote a fairly interesting script. Asger Leth directed some of the ledge and robbery scenes with aplomb while other sections didn’t quite work as well.

Overall: It was interesting while watching it, but it has no legs because the very next day – it is forgotten.

Haywire

First Hit:  Although the story is not very strong, Gina Carano is good as a private intelligence action contractor.

I saw two action films with women as the lead characters this weekend and the primary difference is believability of their skills.

Mallory (played by Gina Carano) is a contractor for hire. She will provide protection, rescue hostages, or anything for a price. She’s a former Marine as was her hero father Mr. Kane (played by Bill Paxton).

The filmmakers made enough of this backstory making her skills and intensity believable.

The film begins with her sitting in a booth drinking a cup of tea. The intensity on her face tells the whole story, she’s in the middle of a story and we are slowly invited in. One thing I noticed was that there were no opening credits, which was nice.

The basic story is that she is set up to be eliminated along with a Chinese hostage she is supposed to rescue. However, Paul a British intelligence officer (played by Michael Fassbender) who is the guy that has to kill her soon realizes that this is going to be difficult. At every turn there are people after her and she takes care of business in a reasonable fashion.

Towards the end she’s offered a legitimate job with the US Government but she has a revenge streak in her and therefore until she finishes the people who tried to finish her, she isn’t taking the job.

Carano is fully capable of making this role hers and she does an outstanding job of having me believe she was capable of all her moves. Fassbender was good as the British MI agent. Antonio Banderas, as Rodrigo, did a nice minor turn as the instigator of the films events. Channing Tatum, as fellow free agent Aaron, fits his role well. Paxton is wonderful in his small role as Carano’s father. Michael Douglas, as Coblenz, was good as the government man pulling the strings. Ewan McGregor, as Kenneth the leader of the outside contracting agency, seemed lost in his part. Lem Dobbs wrote an OK script in that it held together enough although it wasn’t powerful. Steven Soderbergh did a great job of taking a moderate script and making this film work interestingly.

Overall: This film was fun and enjoyable to watch because the main character made it work.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

First Hit:  For a film labeled “Thriller”, I was not thrilled.

This very plodding overly complex with missing parts rendition of the John le Carre classic novel was, in essence slow to a fault.

However, the period photography, by graining up the film, was excellent.

This movie starts with a killing which takes place during the 15 minute long opening credits. It does set the tone for the film but the  tone is that this is going to be a plodding pragmatic film. There wasn’t one person (character) to care about during the whole thing.

I recall reading the book and finding it engaging but that was mostly because le Carre created something to care about. Here director Tomas Alfredson moves this thing along at the same confusing pace all the way through.

The gaps in the scenes were too large to enjoy putting the film puzzle together. It was at times as if I had to start all over again with each new segment, hold that piece and place it with another piece that might come later or came sometime before this scene. It was too much work for the payoff.

It was generally a flat plane of existence as were the performances by everyone. The stoic faces were suppose to engender intelligence and thought; but for me it only provoked boredom. What was worse was that they kept discussing how this mole was working at the highest places of British Intelligence.

However the mole didn’t seem to be causing much damage. It seem more about saving face (British face).

John Hurt as Control was the most dynamic of all the actors. His tired eyes said something. Gary Oldman as George Smiley (the point of the film) was so reserved that I wanted to reach out and way wake up! This, combined with his being a mindful pragmatic intelligence officer brought out of retirement to find the “spy” was almost unbelievable. Percy Alleline (played by Toby Jones) was one of the more amusing characters as he seemed to suffer from ego issues of being short and being seen. Colin Firth as Bill Haydon (the spy) didn’t do much spying in this film, obviously by design, but it seem hard to find out what he actually gave the Russians that were pissing the British off so much. Bridget O’Connor and Peter Straughan wrote this script which followed the lines of the book while Alfredson directed this in a cold (war) plodding way.

Overall:  Thrilled? No and for my money there was too much thinking and piecing together required to make this film interesting and fulfilling.

A Dangerous Method

First Hit:  I liked the concept but this was a very uneven film.

Sabrina Spielrein (played by Keira Knightley) was a disturbed patient of Carl Jung (played by Michael Fassbender) and ended up being a psychologist and lover of Jung.

She was one of the first to be treated by Jung using the talking method (psychoanalysis). Unfortunately, Knightley’s rendition of Spielrein seemed totally out of place, overly acted, and poorly executed. From the jutting chin, distorted hand positions and the occasional half hearted attempt at a Russian accent, her part was mostly unwatchable.

For this I fault both director David Cronenberg and Knightley. The interaction between Freud (played by Viggo Mortensen) and Jung was somewhat better and as one who studied a lot of psychology and did work in this field I would have like a deeper engagement of each of their theories and the differences between them.

However this film floated along like a rudderless boat. In the end I didn’t care about any of the characters nor did I think I learned much.

Knightley was mostly horrible. This is the worst role I’ve ever seen her in and wonder why she was directed this way. Fassbender was very controlled and reserved as I suppose the character was required to be, yet it took away from the depth of who he was playing. Mortensen was better at Freud than the others were in their characters. There was an arrogant solidness of his thought process that was palatable and interesting. However I would have like to have known more. Christopher Hampton and John Kerr wrote a lifeless script. Cronenberg did not do his best work here and it showed.

Overall: For such a rich subject, to have this fall this flat was really very sad.

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol

First Hit: Whatever one might say about Tom Cruise or this franchise of films, this film was entertaining.

Improbable would be a word that would fit but so would entertaining.

Despite all the odd dialogue and character development, this film is entertaining. OK, enough already about how entertaining it was.

This highly improbable story comes together because the actors make it work. Ethan Hunt (Cruise) is one of the government’s leading IMS agents. He commands the storyline and the sequences as a lead agent needs to.

William Brandt (Jeremy Renner) is the “Analyst” who has a story to tell. Benji Dunn (played by Simon Pegg) is the techno-nerd of the group. The last member of this team is Jane Carter (played by Paula Patton) is the other hands-on physically skilled team member.

The story is simple, someone wants to start a nuclear war between the Russians and Americans. The protagonist Kurt Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist) is a brilliant but slightly insane man who wants to be seen and counted on the world stage. Therefore he obtains the launch codes to Russian missiles and proceeds to make it the launching of a missile a retaliatory event.

This film is filled with great chase scenes and my favorite was the multi-story parking garage. This story also features the tallest building in the world and some of the shots brought up my, once thought gone, fear of heights feelings.

Cruise, despite what one thinks of him, has the ability to charm with good looks and be part of a chase scene and make it work well. Renner gives a strong performance as the Analyst with a story to hide. He's great in this role and provides added intelligence. Pegg is perfect as the odd-ball side kick with blather and brains. Patton is very good as a skilled fighter and her looks, as her character is required to be, fit the part well. Nyqvist is good as the steely man who wants to be seen. I liked Lea Seydoux as Sabine the assassin. Josh Appelbaum and Andre Nemec did a great job of coming up with a story line that works and is entertaining. Brad Bird did an excellent job of keeping the film, light, active, engaging, and without waste.

Overall: I enjoyed this 4th film in this franchise and would watch a fifth.