The Magnificent Seven (2016) film review

Year: 2016
Running Time: 132 minutes
Director: Antoine Fuqua
Writers: Akira Kurosawa, Shinobu Hashimoto and Hideo Oguni (based on the screenplay by) , Nic Pizzolatto and Richard Wenk (screenplay)
Cast: Denzel Washington, Chris Pratt, Ethan Hawke, Peter Sarsgaard, Vincent D'Onofrio, Byung-hun Lee, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Martin Sensmeier, Haley Bennet, Matt Bomer, Luke Grimes

The Magnificent Seven opens in Australian cinemas on September 29 and is distributed by Sony Pictures. Now showing in the United States.

The Magnificent Seven is a throwback to the traditional westerns of yesteryear that ticks all the boxes of what makes a film of it's genre successful. When her town of Rose Creek is taken over by savage gunmen and her husband shot and killed in front of her, Emma Cullen (Haley Bennett) tries to find the right men to bring justice to her hometown. She finds her emancipator in Sam Chisolm (Denzel Washington), who sets out to assemble a group of highly skilled and dangerous men to take on Bartholomew Bogue (Peter Sarsgaard) and his band of men to bring Rose Creek to peace again.

The 2016 Magnificent Seven wears the title of remake loosely, as it doesn't greatly resemble the 1960 film of the same name starring Steve McQueen, Yul Brynner and Charles Bronson that it is based on. This is actually surprising considering how Antoine Fuqua's film is nostalgic as it feel like the westerns of Hollywood's Golden Age. However, as is expected of all remade films with any type of action, it likes to show off what can now be done in the cinematography and special effects department.

And show off it does. There are plenty of impressive sweeping shots of the American west that bring out how attractive it is rather than how brutal. Fuqoa is particularly fond of setting up his cast for hero shots, which usually come when introducing a character or end of the film and are in this case spread out throughout the whole movie. Again, some of these shots are rather impressive such as the seven walking into the sunset (a stereotypical shot for a film of it's genre), but it is more overkill than artistic.

However, the grandest moment of The Magnificent Seven is the fight for Rose Creek. It's battle is exactly what you crave from a western genre film with plenty of action, suspense, unpredictability and heartbreak. The first half of the film (with the exception of the opening scene) coasts along without too much to marvel at, but the promise of and lead up to the final shoot out is superb....and this is no spoiler at all to speak about. The final shoot-out is an accepted piece of a western film, and the plot of The Magnificent Seven lets one know early on that this is where the film is headed.

There isn't too great an attempt of character development for any of the main players besides the basics and what they have done in the past month or so, but each player has a solid and distinctive personality. Despite it being The Magnificent Seven, it is basically Denzel Washington and Chris Pratt being the two of the most magnificence. The two are presented in the film as rock star-like figures and it is them that drive the film. Washington is very good and a real presence on screen as the leader of the seven, Sam Chisolm. His attitude is intriguing and he embodies the cowboy ring-leader with ease and class.

Chris Pratt plays Chisolm's opposite as the mostly intoxicated and laidback, Josh Faraday. Faraday does have many traits that liken him to other Pratt characters in his past movies with his cheeky demeanour and witty one-liners so much that it almost feels as though Pratt was cast purely for comedic value. However, it does work in lightening the mood of the film and giving the screenplay a bit more life. Haley Bennett also does well in the sole female role as Emma Cullen and has several moments throughout the film when she shines.

As westerns do not grace our cinema screens with the consistency which they did in the past, The Magnificent Seven may well be the best of it's genre you see this year. Satisfies lovers of westerns and old-fashioned action.

7/10

SXSW Film Festival: In A Valley of Violence (2016) film review

Year: 2016
Running Time: 104 minutes
Director/ Writer: Ti West
Cast: John Travolta, Karen Gillan, Ethan Hawke, Taissa Farmiga, James Ransone

In A Valley of Violence had it's World Premiere at the 2016 SXSW Film Festival on March 12. Encore screenings will take place on March 13 and 16.

Movie Critical 's guest correspondent, Anna Chu was on hand at the World Premiere of In A Valley of Violence at SXSW and we thank her for taking the time to share her review and thoughts on the film and the special Q&A with the cast and crew.

Right now I feel my opinion of movies sways greatly due to just a few elements, and they're never consistent. Sometimes it's the visual effects, sometimes it's how the dialogue is captured, sometimes it's the actors. Right now what a movie needs to do to capture my attention is to kill it at the opening sequence, and with In A Valley of Violence, I was drawn in from the moment I heard the panting of a dog.

The dog belongs to Paul (Ethan Hawke), a drifter travelling on horseback through the Old West. They come across a priest and his mule, the priest singing praises that his prayers were answered. He is on his way to save the town of Denton, a place full of sin. A place in much need of salvation 'especially the women.', and it is in the town of Denton that the acceleration of violence unfolds.

I have always had a fascination with ghost towns, of places left behind when people just had to up and go. Recently, my boyfriend and I went on a road trip. We were returning back to the Bay Area from Las Vegas, an 8 hour drive normally but we decided to stop 2 hours out of Vegas to Calico, an old mining town with a current population of 9. Today it's a tourist attraction, with a general store, a local saloon, remnants of a bathhouse and a small school hall perched on the edge of town. It used to be an old silver mining town and at the height of its silver production during 1883 and 1885, Calico had over 500 mines and a population of 1,200 people.

When Paul finds himself passing through Denton on the way to Mexico, it is a town on its way to becoming tomorrow's Calico, the dust blowing through the streets and taking up most of the space of the local stores and homes. Of the few people who are left in the town, there is a whole lot of fear and not much else. The Marshal (John Travolta) and his son Gilly (James Ransone) have a controlling grip on this town, and not much is revealed as to why or how this came to be, but the town's reputation of being the 'Valley of Violence' hints at the cause.

Many elements of the film are extremely bloody and with director Ti West's horror film pedigree it doesn't come as much of a surprise. It doesn't overtake the film but adds to the realistic aesthetic. When Paul enters the town for the first time, it looks exactly like an abandoned outpost in the middle of nowhere. The murders, shootouts and barroom brawls you read about were all too real and regular in occurrence. What I appreciated were some of the nods to the horror film genre in this movie, such as the one-by-one knocking off of characters and not knowing when or how the next person would be killed. Also the use of 'scary sounds' as one of the producers described during the start of ambush scene. I felt that Ti's horror resume added a different dynamic to this film that got me jumping out of my seat and my hand over my mouth in big moments of the film that I wasn't expecting.
 
One of the biggest strengths of the movie are the actors and their well-written characters. If we had McConnaissance, we may just have a resurgence of Travolta and Hawke. Both actors were cast so well, and I'm shocked that we haven't seen Hawke play a cowboy-type character before (if we have, pardon my ignorance). Travolta brings the comedic elements to the film as the reluctant antagonist to Paul. James Ransone's Gilly is the one we love to hate, his bravado verging onto masochism as he gets beaten up every time. He is scariest at the end when he starts to forget about his pride and his pain and focuses more on vengeance. And the women! Oh do I love the bickering between Mary Anne (Taissa Farmiga) and Ellen (Karen Gillan). It's so shrill that my ears were about to ring, but they were so strong I only wished they had more screen time.  

However, the one actor we can't forget is the dog in the film. At the Q&A, Hawke joked that he must have appreciated his work in White Fang,but gave full credit to the trainer who happened to be trainer for the dog in The Artist.  Hawke commented that the best experience a young actor can get is to work with animal actors because you can't pretend - the dog will think you're acting weird if you're not yourself. Whatever it was, the dynamic between Paul and his dog could not have been better.

So what do you get when you combine a priest, a drifter, his dog, the town marshall, his son who's also his deputy, his cronies, the deputy's fiancé and her sister? A bloody and smart homage to westerns from the red and white on black opening credits right the way down to the surveying of the damage at the end.

9/10

"Boyhood:Twelve Years on Film" book review

Photographer: Matt Lankes
Contributions: Richard Linklater, Patricia Arquette, Ellar Coltrane, Ethan Hawke, Lorelei Linklater, Cathleen Sutherland, Matt Lankes
Pages: 200
Publisher: University of Texas Press

To purchase Boyhood: Twelve Years on Film, please visit University of Texas Press.

Richard Linklater's Boyhood was released earlier this year to universal praise for it's ground-breaking mode of production and ability to capture the true essence of growing up. "Boyhood: Twelve Years on Film" could be seen as an essential companion for all those who were deeply moved by the film, but it is so much more than that. The book is a true work of art within itself which captures in photography what Boyhood captures on film, which is the cast as their characters growing up in front of the camera and a story being told through Matt Lankes exquisite photography.

Boyhood was shot over a period of twelve years chronicling the life of young Mason (Ellar Coltrane) from when he was five years old till he turned eighteen and left home to attend college. The cast and crew shot the film for a period of two weeks in each of these twelve years and Texan photographer, Matt Lankes was on hand to capture stills from the film and behind the scenes, as well as take portraits of Coltrane, Lorelei Linklater, Ethan Hawke, Patricia Arquette, Richard Linklater and the rest of the cast and crew.

"Boyhood: Twelve Years on Film" captures the process of growing up in a series of photographs taken over the period of twelve years, as well as providing visual documentation of the making of Linklater's film. The black and white photographs taken by Lankes are not only beautiful, but also quite haunting in the way they capture the character as they were in that moment. The cover photo of Mason as he appeared at the beginning of the film is filled with the innocence, while the final photo on the back cover shows a more worldly Mason at the age of eighteen. The series of portraits of each of the main characters show the process of how each evolved into who they become at the end of the film and tell a story about who they were at that exact moment in each portrait. It is true artistry for a portrait to be able to capture so much and also a testament to each of the cast for being able to portray their character so well in just one shot. The colour stills from behind the scenes are also intriguing, fun and well shot.

The photographs are accompanied by written contributions from Coltrane, Hawke, Arquette, Lorelei Linklater, Richard Linklater, producer Cathleen Sutherland and Lankes himself. Each writes a few words on their experience making the film and their understanding of their character. Unlike a typical film companion where a film's cast and crew give a step by step recount of their experience on set, the words the cast and crew have taken to describe their experiences are incredibly deep and heartfelt. Patricia Arquette in particular contributes a lengthy, but wonderful account of what her character and other characters in the film meant to her. Lorelei Linklater's contribution is rather short, but expresses how much the experience meant and for that reason she struggles to put it into words because of it's importance.

"Boyhood: Twelve Years on Film" is by no means the traditional film companion, but even if one was to expect this there would be only pleasant surprise. It is a celebration of life in art and an exquisite keepsake for Boyhood admirers.

9.5/10

Sydney Film Festival: Boyhood (2014)

Year: 2014
Running Time: 163 minutes
Director: Richard Linklater
Writer: Richard Linklater
Cast: Ellar Coltrane, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Lorelei Linklater

BOYHOOD is part of the Official Competition at the 2014 Sydney Film Festival on the 6th and 7th of June. Please see the official website for information on locations, times and ticket information.

Richard Linklater's Boyhood is a beautiful and ground-breaking piece of cinema that's power lies in the subtlety of life's most meaningful moments. Twelve years in the making, Linklater's masterpiece is the true definition of a coming of age film and is revolutionary in it's production. Boyhood is made with a huge amount of love for life and for the process of growing up without any use of exaggeration. Mason is more than a character in a film, he is a boy you form an attachment to and cherish the opportunity to watch grow up.

Boyhood give us the opportunity to play witness to twelve years of Mason's (Ellar Coltrane) life from when he was five years old, to when he is eighteen. Mason starts off as a naïve young boy who still holds hope that his mother (Patricia Arquette) and his father (Ethan Hawke) will get back together, a situation which seems hopeless to everyone but this little boy. Over the years he and his older sister, Samantha (Lorelei Linklater) are moved around Texas and thrust into different family situations when their mother remarries and again divorces, while their father remarries and becomes a father once again. There are great times and low points in every stage of his childhood, which all contribute to the man he is to become.

Boyhood is an incredible cinematic experience. Filming begun back in 2002 and Linklater shot the film every year for the next 12 years. As a result, Mason's boyhood is completely captured on film and is an incredibly emotional experience for anyone watching it. There is a huge sense of attachment to Mason and his family which forms over the 2 hours and 45 minutes, because it is not only 2 hours and 45 minutes you get to know him over. It is twelve years you spend with this boy and have the privilege to watch him grow, which is more than what you have with many people in the real world. The moments which Linklater chooses to share with the audience may not be the most dramatic and exciting (although some most definitely are), but they are the moments which are the most memorable and shape the person Mason is turning into. Many of these moments are also incredibly relatable, such as the awkward conversations between parent and child and when a child is struggling to understand the actions of an adult. The relationships between mother and son, father and son and brother and sister are captured with complete accuracy and a dash of hilarity, particularly in the very first scene with Mason and his Brittney Spears singing and dancing sister.

One of the wonderful things about Boyhood is that Linklater's screenplay and direction evolve as the film and years progress. His creative choices and choices of dialogue are representative to the year and Mason's age without having to say it straight up. The choice of soundtrack lets us know what year we are watching Mason in, and is carefully tailored to what is appropriate for Mason at that point in his life. As the film opens and the image of Mason's lying on the grass staring at the sky appears accompanied by Coldplay's "Yellow", it is the perfect song for this little boy who looks as though he is staring into his future. It is intriguing to watch the evolution of technology as the film progresses to indicate the time period, such as the size and shape of the computers in Mason's classes over time. One of the best moments which gives relevance to the year in the script is when Mason Snr. is having the sex talk with his daughter and using Sarah Palin's pregnant daughter as an example.

All of the characters in the film are extremely well-rounded and the actors all wonderful. There is tremendous commitment displayed by all in this film as all the actors were able to give performances as their characters as if they had been doing so in consecutive days rather than over a period of twelve years. Ellar Coltrane is the absolute star of the film. It is a beautiful thing watching him grow from a young boy into a man and a profoundly moving experience. Mason is a character who could really be anyone. He is an extraordinary boy in some ways, but in many ways he is just an ordinary boy who has the potential to do great things in his manhood. Linklater doesn't sugar coat the character at all and doesn't try to make him the perfect boy. He just wants us to be able to witness the highs and lows of boyhood through a boy who could be anyone's son, brother or friend. Coltrane does this perfectly. It truly is a thrill to watch him grow and you feel something not so different from love for him by the end of the film.

Lorelei Linklater, who plays Samantha is a character not unlike that of Mason. She is the representative of anyone's sister, daughter and friend. The way her character progresses during the film is just as rewarding to watch as Mason's. Her hyperactive little girl, moody teenager and college girl are so relatable and she does wonderfully to create such a believable and very real character.

Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke are both perfect as Mason's parents and their characters are extremely profound. Arquette's Olivia is a very interesting character. She is a very loving mother who always puts her children first, but she tends to make the same bad choices over and over again. Hawke's Mason Snr. on the other hand, has made bad decisions in the past but he is set on righting his wrongs and making changes in his life, which he does do. The relationship between Mason and his father changes over the years and it is great to watch the evolution of this relationship. The adult characters in Boyhood are all extremely interesting. His parents actions effect the person he becomes and is still turning into when the film finishes.

Boyhood is an amazing achievement in film. It is an unprecedented production which gives the viewer a type of attachment to a film and a character which is completely new and absolutely unforgettable.

9/10

Sydney Film Festival: Before Midnight (2013)

Year: 2013
Director: Richard Linklater
Cast: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy
Before Midnight will be screening at the Sydney Film Festival on the 8the June 2013.
Now showing in cinemas across the USA
Opening on the 21st of June 2013 in the UK
Opening on the 18th July 2013 in Australia

So the wait is over and the trilogy finally complete. We now finally know the fate of Celeste and Jesse.

Richard Linklater's trilogy of Before Sunrise, Before Sunset and Before Midnight has been labelled (incorrectly) as the "lowest grossing trilogy of all time" for the fact that it is not your typical trilogy. The films have a tremendous following based on their atypical method and value with the backdrop of a different beautiful European city each time. The latest instalment does not disappoint as it sticks to the same method, but is different enough not to stale or unoriginal.

Before Midnight is set nearly a decade after we last saw Celeste (Julie Delpy) and Jesse (Ethan Hawke) in Paris when they met up for the second time after their romantic first meeting in Vienna nearly 10 years earlier. They find themselves this time in Greece and even though much has changed, they still find in themselves the people they were 20 years earlier on that chance encounter on a train on their way to Vienna.


This last film in Linklater's series is completely different to the first two films. Celeste and Jesse are in a completely different stage of their life compared to the other two times we have met them and therefore the lengthy conversations which they have are not the way they used to be. Being older and at a different stage in their life, they have new responsibilities and challenges and this means different things need to be discussed. Therefore, Celeste and Jesse are a lot more argumentative and this leads to the film being more emotional than they ever have been before.

At times the arguing can become really unsettling and almost reminiscent of Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf?, though still nowhere near as dark. What people will find from this film is that what the two are arguing about and the problems they face are very relatable to all people in that position. If you are like Celeste or Jesse, you almost feel like you are watching yourself and it gives a new perspective on the way you see things. This is a wonderful thing for a film to do because not only is it entertaining, but it is also informing and hopefully even bringing about a change with this information.

The script, as is the case with the first two films, is fantastic. Written by Linklater and the fil's two stars, Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke, the dialogue is fantastic. There are some very funny lines during the film and so interesting to listen to that you hang off the character's every word.

Then there is the gorgeous backdrop of the southern Peloponnese in Greece. It is absolutely exquisite to behold and so much beauty is captured as Celeste and Jesse explore the area. The little chapel they come across is an amazing location.


Delpy and Hawke are both wonderful in this. There is no lack of chemistry between the two, just as there never has been. They bounce off each other so well and their dialogue is spoken so naturally and with so much ease. Both capture every emotion which they are supposed to be feeling and impose it on the viewer as they experience it on screen.

It is sad to see the trilogy finally over, but Before Midnight is the perfect finale. Celeste and Jesse are completely relatable, likable and, as always, thoroughly entertaining.

8/10

The 60th Sydney Film Festival will be running from the 5th-16th June 2013. Please see official website for details.