Turistas

(2006)

RATING:	40%
FORMAT:	DVD

(https://eml.wikipedia.org)

[Paradise Lost]

CUIDADO!

Despite spending time revealing Brazilian culture at its best, this still plays the White supremacist trope that foreign countries are dangerous for Whites simply because of the dark skins of the natives. Believing that foreign people and their resources are to be both exploited and mocked, we now see the naked fear behind such a White polity.

It is easy to understand why the natives here detest White tourists because of the quintessential White supremacism of the latter. But these issues are never fully explored dramatically in favor of gore, cheap thrills & a sense that the mestizo of Brazil is finally getting its revenge on the palefaces for the generic exploitation of the Third World for the sole benefit of the First.

(http://thewolfmancometh.com)

There is no real sense of terror, suspense or even credibility here. As usual, the mixed bag of Westernized Whites represent political innocence abroad as if they can do little wrong - even in their self-admitted purposelessness. This creates a curious lack of empathy between the audience and the central characters; almost making us side with the evil goings-on perpetrated against them.

(http://thewolfmancometh.com)

Hitchcock knew that the greatest horror comes from the familiar seen differently, rather than simply relying on the rather obvious fear-of-the-unknown, as here. He also knew that you have to establish the characters, psychologically, as well as their relationship to each other (& themselves) before an audience could ever care about them.

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Copyright © 2014 Frank TALKER. Permission granted to reproduce and distribute it in any format; provided that mention of the author’s Weblog (http://franktalker5.blogspot.com) is included: E-mail notification requested. All other rights reserved.

FRANKIE BOYLE: Live

Rating: 60%

(www.channel4.com)

Also Known As:

Unknown

Year:

2008

Country:

Predominant Genre:

Comedy

Director:

Outstanding Performances:

None.

Premiss:

Various

Themes:

Alienation | Destiny | Emotional repression | Loneliness | Political Correctness | Republicanism | Social class | White culture | White guilt | White supremacy

Similar (in Plot, Theme or Style) to:

Eddie Murphy | Richard Pryor

Review Format:

DVD

Soi-disant Black comic who provides a good night out, but has little of any real political weight to say.

BOYLE never goes deeply into any subject, but relies on a superficial turn-of-wit that resembles marketing slogans in which the form and the content are identical.

BOYLE’s anti-capitalist UK republicanism is frequently implied but never fruitfully explored in his quest for the next big laugh. Interestingly, he has regular, surreal moments conjuring up brilliant word-pictures to accurately describe something he is railing against – with incredible pith and celerity.

This is a man who has still not come to terms with his personal demons (eg, fear of the disabled & and his Negrophobia) to allow him to become an outstanding comic. He is nothing like the actual Black comics whose symbolism he appropriates (eg, Richard Pryor or Eddie Murphy).

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Copyright © 2014 Frank TALKER. Permission granted to reproduce and distribute this posting in any format; provided mention of the author’s Weblog (http://franktalker5.blogspot.com) is included: E-mail notification requested. All other rights reserved.

Sssshhh (2003)

RATING:	40%
FORMAT:	DVD

(www.movietalkies.com)

Bland Leading the Bland

Interesting attempt to inject genuine human emotion and warmth into the serial killer sub-genre which ultimately fails because the movie is just too long.

The leading lady lacks a star personality and the convoluted plotting suggests a lack of thematic conviction on the part of the film-makers.

The plus side is that the film is atmospheric and suspenseful with its clichés, despite a melodramatic tendency to over-emphasize and underline emotions.

Although stylish and well filmed, it really does not make much sense in its increasingly-desperate attempt to keep you guessing.

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Copyright © 2011 Frank TALKER. Permission granted to reproduce and distribute it in any format; provided that mention of the author’s Weblog (http://franktalker5.blogspot.com) is included: E-mail notification requested. All other rights reserved.

Groundhog Day

Rating: 60%

(http://theschleicherspin.com)

Also known as:

Unknown

Year:

1993

Country of Origin:

USA

Predominant Genre:

Comedy

Best Performances:

None

Plot:

A weather man is reluctantly sent to cover a story about a weather forecasting “rat”.

Themes:

Destiny | Personal change | Self-expression | Political Correctness

Similar To (in Plot, Theme or Style):

Unknown

Review Format:

DVD

Interesting wish-fulfillment movie with a clever premise - personal maturity - but a weak execution.

As the central character experiences a recurring dream of travelling back in time, from which he cannot wake, the audience has the same kind of feeling because this drama does not go beyond the merely fantastic to present psychologically-believable characters. Individual set-pieces are funny but, as a whole, this adds up to not much at all.

Here, a man chooses not to change his egocentrism and so gets worse as the years go by – all compressed into a single 24-hour period. Initially, he suffers no consequences – no matter how appalling his behavior toward others – and so has no incentive to change. He is finally brought face-to-face with how empty and repetitive his life has become since fate repeats a single day in his life, over and over, so that his errors become clearer to him by being shown in sharp relief.

During this reverse time-travel period, he cannot move forward emotionally so begins to experience suicidal ennui. This transforms into joy when he realizes that he can stop repeating his mistakes and learn from them each time he makes them in order to improve.

The central issue here is whether one chooses ones own destiny or whether it chooses you. The corollary of this is that only by changing oneself can one ever hope to change this destiny. The only emotional highpoint is that he must repeat life-saving deeds (‘errands’) each day to learn about taking the very personal responsibility that will turn his life around. This suggests the karmic principle that what you give out you get back, a hundredfold – so long as those others are receptive, themselves.

Andie McDOWELL is as bland as she usually is; while Bill MURRAY has (& is) fun, but we do not really believe in MURRAY because this is more a role for someone like Steve MARTIN. There is also none of the sexual chemistry between the two so essential to a working romantic-comedy. MURRAY is quite a unique performer, albeit limited: He needs the strong direction of a Wes Anderson to bring out what makes him MURRAY - and that is just what is so sadly lacking here.

This film adds up to nothing more than a self-reflexive exercise in cinematic self-indulgence. Each repeated day is little more than another cinema take of the same scene which does not build into the profound meditation on the value of intimate experience with others it thinks it does.

Films about their own production processes rarely rise above a form of theatrical treading water – and this is no exception.

The bored and the boring will find deep resonances in their own repetitious existence with this one but, despite its premise, it does not merit repeat viewings.

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Copyright © 2014 Frank TALKER. Permission granted to reproduce and distribute it in any format; provided that mention of the author’s Weblog (http://franktalker5.blogspot.com/) is included: E-mail notification requested. All other rights reserved.

Spetters (1980)

80%

(https://mubi.com)

Densely plotted and compelling tragi-comedy of love and life on and off the motorcycle race track. Life is seen as a motorway with many intersections that one can take or not – as the case may be; each representing the choices one must make in life.

What wraps up the whole drama in a nice package is a stunning performance from the equally stunning Renée SOUTENDIJK. She tells us more about the boys here than the boys themselves as they try to measure up to her expectations of a man in order to get her into bed. The only real problem with this movie is that there are too many characters to follow for a two hour film to support our emotions fully.

Above-average romp through teenaged sexuality and establishing an identity that gets right to the point of the basic issues.

SOUTENDIJK makes the most of a sluttish role that she manages to humanize very effectively.

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Copyright © 2009 Frank TALKER. Permission granted to reproduce and distribute it in any format; provided that mention of the author’s Weblog (http://franktalker5.blogspot.com) is included: E-mail notification requested. All other rights reserved.