By Benjamin Akpan Taika Wiatiti’s Jojo Rabbit – depending on your point of view – might very well be one of the best, or very worst movies of the year. Its premise is wacky, yet extremely risky, and Waititi treads an extremely fine line by even attempting to bring this concept to life. The New Zealand filmmaker takes his oddball style of storytelling out of New Zealand (where his earlier works are set), far from Asgard (where Waititi concocts one of the best Marvel movies with Thor: Ragnarok), and straight to The Third Reich.
By Benjamin Akpan In the US, about 30 states still authorize the death penalty – a matter of active controversy, not only in the States, but around the world. In her second feature film Clemency, director Chinonye Chukwu digs a little deeper into the question of capital punishment, charged forward by a tour de force performance by Alfre Woodard, though slightly held back by a lack of thematic coherence. This soul-crushing depiction of the inhumanity of execution by the state is incredibly harrowing, and a well-made quest for reflection.
By Benjamin Akpan Shia LaBeouf has always been one of Hollywood’s most complex mysteries; not because he’s some inscrutable figure too hard to understand (that’s a role Bill Murray has laid claims to). Rather, it’s because no one could easily articulate why they liked or disliked him. From his early days as a Disney-darling on Even Stevens to becoming a blockbuster mainstay with Transformers, LaBeouf’s career has rapidly grown and evolved. But more recently, LaBeouf has been plagued with tabloid altercations, arrests, rehab stints, and legal troubles – much of which have shaped the way people view him today.
By Benjamin Akpan One of American writer Jack London’s most celebrated novels, the 1909 book Martin Eden contains beautiful prose and sharp social commentary. Its subject matter is heavy, tackling political philosophy as well as the stresses of life. A mostly autobiographical tale, London deviates from the life-and-death adventures typical in his other novels. Only twice has Martin Edenbeen adapted for screen – both times even before the advent of colour television – and you’d be hard-pressed to find someone with knowledge of either film.
By Benjamin Akpan Noah Baumbach has always had a knack for portraying the mundanity of life with such great detail and grace. Be it an older couple trying to revive their marriage, an aspiring dancer going through the motions in New York, or even the relationship between two deeply flawed step-sisters, Baumbach has without fail managed to make the ordinary feel so spectacular. And so he returns, this time with Marriage Story, delivering yet another melodrama that’s nothing but a showcase of his métier for dysfunctional relationships and their eventual demise.
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