WAR HORSE

WAR HORSE
Written by Lee Hall and Richard Curtis
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Starring Jeremy Irvine, Emily Watson, Tom Hiddleston and fourteen different horses as “Joey”

The other day, I told a friend of mine that I had never in my life ever ridden a horse. She gasped in horror as if I had missed out on one of life’s most rewarding experiences. I’m not against the idea of it, although I can’t imagine horses enjoy that kind of weight on them for hours at a time. I have just never had the occasion and therefore, I have never had the chance to connect to one of these majestic creatures, like so many others. From what I understand, the bond between a person and a horse can be quite something but having no first hand experience with it, I have no idea why. And so, my lack of horse experience or appreciation may have unduly influenced my reading of Steven Spielberg’s WAR HORSE. Or maybe, it just wasn’t that great.

Based on both the original 1982 children’s novel by Michael Morpurgo and the 2007 stage play by Nick Stafford, WAR HORSE is the story of one remarkable journey, had by a horse. The horse, named Joey in the film, starts out born on a farm, and we are naturally present for that birth, and then, after being separated from his mother, is sold at auction in a pissing contest between a landlord and lis lessee. There, Joey must overcome his exquisiteness to become a work horse or the farmer will lose his land. Past that, he goes off to fight in the first World War and the film follows as he changes hands during his four years away from home. Some of the characters Joey meets along the way make for some tender and beautiful moments but given that the story is his, the perspective gets away from him all too often. A horse’s point of view is a little awkward but Spielberg should have reigned himself back in and focused more.

This horse movie is nearly three hours long and it is never clear what kind of movie we are actually watching. Spielberg is known for two types of filmmaking - family style blockbusters that are entertaining for all and graphic war films. WAR HORSE tries to be both of these films, which makes the experience a confusing one at times. The first hour, or at least it felt that way, is about Joey bonding with his young owner, Albert Narracott (relative unknown, Jeremy Irvine) and seeing if he truly can plow the field. The tone is light, the story tired and the shots somewhat plain considering the man behind the camera. Once he goes off to war, the tone changes drastically and the stylized violence Spielberg thrives on takes over, erasing all traces of family entertainment. Predictability follows and we wait for the horse to find his way home. We wait almost three hours ... for a horse.

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THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN

THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN
Written by Steven Moffat, Edgar Wright and Joe Cornish
Directed by Steven Spielberg
Starring Jamie Bell, Andy Serkis and Daniel Craig


Tintin: How’s your thirst for adventure, Captain?
Captain Haddock: Unquenchable, Tintin.

When I was a kid, I abhorred the series of Tintin book. I found them to be tedious and terribly dull. And so when it was announced that the Belgian books would be adapted into a film, I was less than enthused. The involvement of director, Steven Spielberg, helped some but it wasn’t until I first saw the trailer for THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN that I ever even imagined it might actually be a lot of fun. No offense to Hergé, the author of over 20 Tintin adventures, or the millions of fans the world over who adore this adorable character, but after seeing Spielberg bring his particular brand of awe to the tale, I feel that all Tintin needed all along was a little bit of that good old movie magic to bring him to life. I’m not sure if that makes this an authentic adaptation but I think I prefer it this way.

Spielberg chooses to tell Tintin’s story with motion capture, 3D animation instead of the traditional hand drawn animation that would have been more loyal to its origins. This is actually Spielberg’s first crack at directing an animated film and to see it begs the question, why did he ever wait this long? Not only is the aesthetic richly detailed but his imagination is boundless in this limitless format. He can go anywhere he pleases and he most certainly does. Whether that finds our hero zip lining through a crowded marketplace on the handles of a motorbike or flying a plane through the clouds in the middle of a violent lightning storm, the action is always exciting and lofty. Some of it is a bit far fetched at times but as outlandish as it can be, it never feels impossible and it is always a ton of fun.

Tintin, as portrayed underneath all that animation by the charming Jamie Bell, is a curious journalist hot on the trail of a missing treasure. His pursuit finds him crossing paths with a modern day pirate bent of beating him to it (Daniel Craig) and a sea captain who contains the key to solving the mystery (Andy Serkis). As a hero, Tintin is a delight. His good nature and inquisitive mind make him extremely likable to the point where, if I had hair, I would wear it with a cowlick right up front in honour of the great explorer. THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN is the Indiana Jones movie Spielberg should have made instead of that last one. It appeals directly to my all too often silent boyish exuberance and runs with that unencumbered spirit as high and as far as it can. It is vibrant and its energy is electric, allowing Tintin’s own wonder and amazement at his adventure to wash over us and become our own.

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SUPER 8

Written and Directed by J.J. Abrams

Starring Joel Courtney, Elle Fanning, Kyle Chandler and Ron Eldard

Charles: It looks like a disaster movie, doesn't it?

J.J. Abrams, the man behind the polarizing television series, “Lost” and the stellar STAR TREK reboot from a couple years back, longs for simpler times in his latest adventure, SUPER 8. The film has been shrouded in secrecy and mystery since it was announced, which I imagine excited Abrams a great deal, and it is finally time to see what all the fuss is about. Is it another big budget thrill ride from start to finish? Or will it be a long, meandering mess of confusion that doesn’t necessarily go anywhere at all? With Abrams, you never know what you’re going to get until you get it and people are never really in agreement once they have it either. With SUPER 8 though, you’re going to get something altogether new for the director – a fun time for all.

It is 1979 and a handful of geeky kids are set for the summer of their lives in Lillian, Ohio, making a zombie movie with their super-8mm camera. Their naiveté draws the viewer into their world and suddenly Abrams’ longing for a time when kids were perfectly amused riding bikes and playing with model trains, is ours as well. The tricky thing about child-like innocence though is that you never know when it will be taken away. Joe Lamb (played by impressive first-timer, 15-year-old, Joel Courtney) already knows how it feels to have his world crash like a massive train wreck, having just lost his mother in a freak accident. So by the time he actually witnesses an actual derailment, he is better prepared than his filmmaker cohorts to deal with the wreckage. There is no way he could be ready to deal with what they find amongst the debris though. And believe me, there will be times when you won’t know how to deal with it either. It’s quite scary.

Most people expected SUPER 8 to be simple homage to the film’s executive producer, Steven Spielberg, king of the family adventure film. While the influence is undeniable, the execution contains a more modern understanding of emotional communication. Films like E.T. and CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND are event pictures that commanded attention but the depth in SUPER 8 is at times completely flooring. For instance, Joe has a crush on a girl he shouldn’t, Alice Dainard (Elle Fanning). Their fathers (Kyle Chandler and Ron Eldard) are messed up and can’t stand each other but these two can’t help but gravitate towards each other. In one scene, while watching footage of Joe’s deceased mother on a projector, Alice says through her tears, “I know I don’t know you at all, even though it feels like I do.” It is as if they’re discovering themselves and healing their hurt right before our eyes. It is truly moving.

SUPER 8 can be called a tribute and be proud to wear the moniker but the truth of it is that Abrams’ latest is a unique experience unto itself. It is often frightening and tense, surprisingly touching and contains some of the most massive special effects extravagance I’ve seen. Perhaps what it shares most in common with Spielberg’s earlier works is that it too demands to be seen and experienced in theatres, sitting amongst family and friends. It is an event that is utterly thrilling and yet somehow manages great insight and comfort as well – a rare feat as I’m sure we can all agree. In the end, watching these kids come of age made me wish my eyes were still just as wide as theirs. Thanks to SUPER 8, for a couple of hours, they actually were.

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CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND

Written and Directed by Steven Spielberg

Starring Richard Dreyfuss, Melinda Dillon, Teri Garr

and Francois Truffaut

Interpreter: He says the sun came out at night. He says it sang to him.

Inexplicably, I have always been intrigued by alien life. I have never seen a UFO; nor have I ever been abducted. But boy oh boy do I love watching movies where these things happen to other people. One of the greatest examples of the genre is Steven Spielberg’s CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND. Made in 1977 with a reported budget of $2.5 million, Spielberg created a giant blockbuster with all the awe and excitement that is expected to be there but with a few surprises as well. Just beneath the jaw-dropping special effects that still hold up against anything put out today, is a quiet level of introspection the slowly comes to a full boil by the time these encounters truly get close.

From the very start, Spielberg plants the seeds of wonder and curiosity in the viewer’s mind. An elaborate sandstorm is whipping across the screen and a bunch of men begin to arrive at different intervals. They don’t all speak the same language and ask vague questions with impossible answers like, “Are we the first?” Amidst all this chaos is the key to Spielberg’s success, the hook. The action is so disorienting and so clearly of great importance given the urgency in everyone’s tone, that one cannot help but want to know just what on earth in going on. Suddenly there are planes in a desert, found after 30 years of being missing but there are no signs of any pilots and all of this is somehow good news for the French. The need to know where all of this is going is intense.

Before you know it, we are on a farm in Indiana. The imagery is so iconic, it is almost a close encounter all unto itself. There is something unsettling in the night sky. You can sense that something is coming, something never seen before. A child runs into the night but he doesn’t know why or where he is going, just that he must. Suddenly, power everywhere is going out and an electrical lineman, Roy Neary (Richard Dreyfuss), is called out to investigate. Instead of figuring out the power problem, he comes into contact with something way bigger. Roy’s encounter is the closest we see and he is not the same after it’s done. The sounds, the colours, the lights, they all haunt him after the fact and his fascination becomes obsession, one that he is powerless to calm.

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND is a grand experience and irrefutable evidence that Spielberg is one of the greatest film directors of all time. Not only does he know where he is going and how to get there, he also has an uncanny ability to inspire an immense amount of child-like enthusiasm in his audience. In this case, he divides his characters into believers and non-believers. If you choose to ignore the obvious, that we are not alone in this universe, then you check out of the film early. If you do believe, or at least if you want to, the desperate need to understand and get closer to the encounters themselves is infectious. Adult or no, your desire is innocent and simple. It is almost as if we aren’t really chasing aliens at all. Rather, we gravitate uncontrollably toward believing in our own boundless imaginations.

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