2020-2029, Film Review

In the Heights (2021)

Posted on June 17, 2021June 17, 2021 by Martin: Through the Silver Screen

In The Heights – Film Review

Cast: Anthony Ramos, Corey Hawkins, Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera, Olga Merediz, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Gregory Diaz IV, Jimmy Smits

Director: Jon M. Chu

Synopsis: In the Washington Heights area of New York City, the owner of a bodega aspires to one day relocate to the Dominican Republic to fulfil a childhood dream…

Review: Whenever someone mentions the name Lin-Manuel Miranda, many will undoubtedly immediately think of his work with the hugely popular musical Hamilton. Winner of an incredible 11 Tony Awards, thanks to a release of a recording of the show on Disney+ last year, it gave those who hadn’t had the chance to see it revel in its wonderful performances and irresistibly catchy tunes. Yet, Hamilton was not Miranda’s first foray into the world of musicals. Before he enjoyed phenomenal success with his adaptation of the life of one of the founding fathers of the United States, there was In the Heights, a musical penned by Miranda about the place where he grew up. Now, in the hands of director Jon M. Chu, comes an adaption that, it will not shock you to learn, is an absolutely euphoric blast of sun-soaked joy.

For any musical, the opening number is arguably the most important one of them all, as it has the task of setting the scene and getting the audience in the mood. Through this absolute bop of an opener, we meet our protagonist Usnavi (Ramos) the owner of a bodega in the Washington Heights area of New York City. Usnavi has fond memories of his childhood and the beach bar in the Dominican Republic that was once run by his father. With the bodega, and a handful of other businesses in the area at risk of going out of business, he becomes determined to raise enough money to leave New York behind and return to the Dominican Republic to reopen his family’s bar. But over the course of one summer in this vibrant Latino community in Washington Heights, as Usnavi meets with old friends and makes some new connections, there’s every chance that this will be a special, unforgettable summer.

The opening musical number introduces us to an array of the people and their livelihoods in this particular neighbourhood in the Big Apple. From Usnavi’s cousin Sonny (Diaz) who helps him run the bodega, Abuela Claudia (Merediz), the neighbourhood’s matriarch who played an integral role in raising Usnavi, Kevin the owner of a nearby business and his daughter Nina who’s returned to the area after a year in college, her relationship with Benny (Hawkins), to finally Vanessa (Barrera) an aspiring fashion designer, who Usnavi has developed a massive crush on. For each and every single person in this neighbourhood, they are all motivated by their own “sueñitos”(little dreams).

As the film’s central character, Usnavi is immediately a very charming and likeable presence. Following on from his role in Hamilton, this is Anthony Ramos’s shot at a leading role, and he does not throw it away. He’s constantly thinking about his sueñito, to run that beach bar that was such an integral part of his life growing up. Yet he’s reminded of just how special this area of New York, and the people who make it home are to him. Chief among these people is his crush Vanessa. For her, her sueñito is to become a fashion designer, and Barrera’s performance is equally impressive and emotionally heartfelt in a terrific cast. There is not a false note to be found anywhere in any of their performances.

As one comes to expect when Lin-Manuel Miranda pens the music, the soundtrack is packed to the brim with irresistibly catchy and joyful songs that will be filling your eardrums for weeks afterwards. As well as the irresistibly catchy music, what is equally impressive is the choreography that accompanies each and every musical number. Furthermore, each song and musical number has its own unique vibe, which comes from the variety of backdrops for each song, and the excellent use of lighting and camerawork that director Jon. M. Chu utilises. The screenplay by Quiara Alegría Hudes touches on a number of very topical themes like family, identity, aspirations, and what it means to be a part of a community. Given that the original musical was written in 2005, Hudes’s screenplay has made some important changes to the plot that makes it in tandem with modern day events, such as the aspirations of the Dreamers. This crucially lends an extra weight to the stories of the people that are being brought to life on screen, because they will undoubtedly reflect many of the hopes and dreams of the people in this community.

While each and every song here are certified jams, the film is just ever slightly let down by some pacing issues in and around the middle act of the film. However, if you’re going to pick a soundtrack to be the music to your summer, you’re unlikely to find a more vibrant, soulful and downright joyous than this one. It might have taken a while for this adaptation of this musical to lift our spirits and infect our eardrums with its joyful tunes. After the difficult time that has been had by all over the last year or so, this is the perfect blast of euphoric enjoyment that we all need and deserve, and it was certainly worth the wait.

Filled with a plethora of wonderful characters, and some certifiable bops jammed packed throughout, In The Heights is the positive, life-affirming blast of joy that the world needs right now.

2020-2029, Film Review

The Father (2021)

Posted on June 11, 2021June 11, 2021 by Martin: Through the Silver Screen

The Father – Film Review

Cast: Anthony Hopkins, Olivia Colman, Mark Gatiss, Imogen Poots, Rufus Sewell, Olivia Williams

Director: Florian Zeller

Synopsis: An elderly man suffering from dementia refuses any assistance from carers or his family as he ages. As his condition begins to worsen, he tries to make sense of his situation…

Review: As human beings, we go through our lives so often surrounded by our loved ones, and for many, nothing can beat the warm embrace that family and friends can provide for us. But, what if one day, someone who you’re very close to, suddenly turned around had no idea who you are, or what they used to do for a living? There’s no getting away from the fact that dementia can have a devastating effect on a person’s mind. It is estimated that around 54 million people around the world currently living with dementia. Through his directorial debut, Florian Zeller provides a unique look at this disease can have on not just the sufferer, but their closest relatives as well.

Anthony (Hopkins) is a man who is suffering from dementia and is slowly starting to lose his grip on reality. His daughter Anne (Colman) tries to plead with her father to get him a professional carer to help him with his condition. However, Anthony point blank refuses, as he believes there is nothing wrong with himself, and is determined to live his life on his own terms. Consequently, by rebuffing her offers of assistance, it begins to erode Anne’s patience with her father, which has a knock-on effect on Anne’s relationship with her husband, especially as all is not what it seems in Anthony’s mind. As his grip on reality slowly starts to dissipate with each passing day.

Adapted from the play “Le Père“, approaching a film that deals with such delicate subject matter is always a challenge for the filmmakers. However, the screenplay by Zeller (who also wrote the play) and Christopher Hampton takes an extremely innovative approach in how it tells its story. Namely, it chooses to frame the film entirely from the perspective of its lead character. By doing this, it lets the audience into the mind of Anthony himself, to see how living with this disease can have such a debilitating effect on the person’s day to day life. Day-to-day conversations are continuously changing. One minute, there’s someone on screen informing Anthony (and the audience) as to who they are. Yet in the very next scene, they might be someone completely different. Through Zeller’s brilliant direction, you wonder are they who they say they are? And crucially, the audience gets a glimpse of what living with this disease must be like.

Anthony Hopkins is an actor who needs no introduction. With his distinguished career whose career is now in its seventh decade, he has given so many brilliant performances across a lifetime of wonderful work. Yet with this heart-breaking performance, it’s easily the best performance he has given in a very long time. He starts off the film in a very buoyant mood, but with each passing scene, it becomes clear that this disease is taking an immeasurable toll on his well being. Given that his character shares his name with the actor portraying him, it is evident that Zeller had Hopkins in mind when bringing this performance to life, and it pays off massively with an astonishing performance. Alongside him, Colman’s role of Anne is more subdued, but we sympathise with her as she tries to show love towards her father, even if that is starting to wear extremely thin as Anthony’s condition takes hold, and his stubborn refusal to accept her help.

This is far from an easy watch, but what Zeller has accomplished through this study of this disease, is an emotionally powerful film that will hopefully be extremely effective in increasing awareness about this disease. Given that it is estimated that the number of people suffering from dementia across the world will rise to 130 million by 2050, this is fast becoming a very serious issue that demands our increased awareness as a society. For the simple reason that it is entirely possible that we, or that someone we love, may well suffer from this disease at one point in our lives.

A careful approach to its subject matter, extremely innovative direction, and an absolutely heart-breaking lead performance from Hopkins, all combine to make The Father an extremely moving, and unforgettably devastating drama.

2020-2029, Film Review

A Quiet Place Part II (2021)

Posted on June 6, 2021 by Martin: Through the Silver Screen

**© Paramount Pictures and Platinum Dunes**

A Quiet Place Part II – Film Review

Cast: Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe, Cillian Murphy, John Krasinski, Djimon Hounsou

Director: John Krasinski

Synopsis: The surviving members of the Abbott family, now armed with the knowledge as to how to defeat the terrifying creatures that have hypersensitive hearing, head out into what remains of civilisation…

Review: There’s something that feels rather eerie about a film that features a world that’s forever changed by a deadly event, especially when you consider when it was poised to be released to the world. The time was March 2020, the premiere had taken place, and the film was due to be released to the world, until it was forced to be delayed due to the global pandemic that was sweeping the planet. Additionally, for a film that has a premise that centres on a world where being silent is of the utmost importance, it was reminiscent of when in those early months of the pandemic, those usually packed streets that we see across the world, became eerily quiet for an extended period of time. As such, there’s much about this franchise that feels very relevant for the tough times that we have been experiencing in the past year.

Following an extended, and thrilling, prologue that shows the very first day when these terrifying creatures began to wreak unspeakable devastation on our very noisy world, things fast forward to the present day of this world. We pick up right where they left off for the Abbott family. Following the events of the first film, Evelyn (Blunt), their new born son, deaf daughter Reagan (Simmonds), and son Marcus (Jupe) depart from their now destroyed home, in search of a new place to find shelter away from the monsters. Their search leads them to a base that’s currently occupied by Emmett (Murphy), a man whose experiences in this apocalyptic world have made him very suspicious of what remains of humanity.

A key element of what made the first film the unique and nerve shredding experience it was, was the marvellous way the film uses sound to put the audience on the ground with these characters. Going into the sequel, one might have wondered if Krasinski and his sound team had caught lighting in a bottle, and would be unable to repeat their feat this time around. However, not only have they managed to recapture that brilliance, they have arguably gone better with their sound work. Through Krasiniski’s screenplay, that tension that was expertly crafted into the first film is brilliantly recaptured here, keeping the audience on the edge of their seat as they, like the characters on screen, strive to not make a sound. Krasinski builds on his brilliant directorial debut, opting in numerous instances to use multiple long takes, showing the audience truly just how perilous this world is, and how even the slightest misstep could spell be your downfall.

Much like the first film, the performances from all of the cast are excellent. Though she has a much more withdrawn role this time around, Emily Blunt is once again as the parent who must take care of a new born infant, and at the same, time defend her family. Though given the tragic fate that her husband Lee in the first film, there’s a void to be filled there, and Millicent Simmonds is the one who steps up to fill that void. This sequel shifts its focus from the older generation to the younger, and Simmonds steps up to the challenge, and gives the best performance in the film. Given that she herself is deaf, it adds so much authenticity to the character and the challenge that she faces to protect her family in this perilous world. With Blunt in a more withdrawn role, this gives Cillian Murphy’s Emmett the lead role amongst the adult cast, and he seizes that opportunity with both hands.

Given how much of a success the first film turned out to be, Krasinski would be forgiven if he had taken a silent moment before committing to making a sequel to A Quiet Place. Therefore, it is testament to him that with two extremely well made horror films now under his belt, he has cemented his growing reputation as a director to watch. After the extremely tough year that cinemas have had to endure since were first forced to shut their doors, films like A Quiet Place Part II serve as a powerful reminder of the power that cinema can have, especially when it’s seen on the big screen.