Ratings Key:
:):)Really Good/Highly Recommend :) Good :| Mediocre :\ Not good, but still fun :( Sucks
>:( A terrible waste of time
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"Contagion"
Somebody finally made a zombie apocalypse film, without the zombies! Contagion takes a very realistic approach to the whole outbreak film genre, while also educating the audience on how fragile and disgusting we all can be.
The story follows a team of CDC doctors lead by Dr.Cheever (Fishburn) and Dr.Mears (Kate Winslet) in their race to find a cure for a vicious and highly contagious epidemic. The unknown virus sends it's victims into seizers, killing them just days after it's made contact. We also see how it effects the lives of Mitch (Matt Damon), a family man dealing with the loss of his wife and step-son. Dr.Orantes (Marion Cotillard) a world health organization worker, and Alan (Jude Law) a popular blogger using the hysteria for his own financial gain.
It's a suspense-thriller, but depending on how germaphobic you are it's a horror movie. The cinematography often weaves in and out, catching unsanitary behavior. Whenever the CDC are present you'll get a ton of facts thrown at you about unsavory human nature, and how diseases spread and mutate.
Contagion movies at a fairly quick pace, bouncing back and forth from location to location. Presenting a global scale of how fast the disease is spreading. A lot of well known names pop up in smaller rolls (Gwyneth Paltrow, Bryan Cranston, Demetri Martin). Unfortunately it's when the time comes to add that emotional connection with it's main characters - it falls flat. The best it can do is with Damon's story, which even still feels a bit vapid in it's delivery. With most of the other characters towards the end, the emotional ties are crowbarred in. An after effect of trying to juggle so many stories at breakneck speed.
Verdict:
:|
"The Fighter"
The best movie I've seen about boxing since "Rocky". Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale play Micky Ward and Dicky Eklund (respectively). Based on actual events, It's a gripping movie about family disfunction, disillusionment, and being the underdog.
Dicky's revelation about the camera crew following him around filming his "comeback" feels sincere, no wonder Bale won best supporting Oscar for this. His performance ironically steals the show - and it becomes apparent how much he immersed himself in the roll when you get a glimpse of the real Eklund. He bounce's around and has the same excitement and in his eyes about boxing as the genuine article. The movie does a brilliant job of building tension upon tension, until you're begging for Walberg's character to catch a freaking break! I can't recommend this film enough.
Verdict:
:):)
"Videodrome"
One of those cult-films I've wanted to see for awhile. Thankfully it recently popped up on netflix with a ton of other movies I've missed. Videodrome is an early eighties cross-genre flick. Part psychological thriller, part sci-fi horror; Videodrome is about society's desensitization through the media.
I wouldn't be surprised if this was inspiration for Nine Inch Nail's "broken" album. The tone is quite subversive and dark for it's time. Along with it's commentary on overstimulation leading to mindlessness, and ultimately self destruction.
James Woods plays TV programmer, Max Reen, who's constant apatite for hyper-violent and titillating media keeps him raising the bar for higher ratings. Until Max comes across a mysterious torture-porn like series called "Videodrome". After exposure to the show, he develops a tumor that begins to destroy his mind and body.
His perception of reality and fantasy bleeds into one, through a number of disturbing
hallucinations all crafted through the twisted work of special effects master Rick Baker. Scenes like Woods literally being sucked into his TV, or a stomach turing into a vcr dispenser/female genitalia, could easily become laughable. It's the sadomasochistic way it's done that makes it serious business.
Baker's use of practical effects, and writer/director David Cronenberg's unconventional way of staging will definitely mess with your head. Videodrome's biggest weak spot? The acting often takes a backseat to the story and production, so the characters come off a little too one-dimensional. I can also see the ending being too bleak for some - but it makes sense in the context of the main character's trappings.
Videodrome is still shockingly relevant and would make a great double-feature with Cronenberg's other classic - the 1980's remake of "The Fly".
Verdict:
:)
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