Movie Club - 'The Usual Suspects'

When a man by the name of Verbal is brought in for questioning, he tells an almost unbelievable story. Verbal recounts the story in flashback, of five criminals who meet in a police line-up who decide to band together to perform a vengeful heist, which leads them further into crime.

The Usual Suspects is an intricate film of intense, sometimes superfluous, editing that reveals a plot of mystery and revelations. It is part crime, part mystery part film-noir and relies on plot and post-editing to grip the viewer to the very end.

Full of violent twists, and the mysterious Keyser Soze, the film requires the viewer to watch closely, almost demanding it to be watched a second time over. However the acting is fluid, the plot crafted meticulously and the script witty.

The film won two Academy Awards, one of which was for ‘Best Original Screenplay’,  it also won two BAFTAs for ‘Best Original Screenplay’ and ‘Best Editing’. The film’s intense editing and intense plot will keep you on your toes.

The Movie Club will be screening 'The Usual Suspects' on Wednesday 10 May, 6pm sharp at Narellan Library. Tea, coffee and biscuits provided, BYO snacks are more than welcome. Stay after the screening for a short discussion about the film. See the discussion questions to get some ideas.

Movie Club—Fargo

This month the Movie Club will be screening Joel and Ethan Coen's Fargo, starring Francis McDormand, William H. Macy, and Steve Buscemi.

Car salesman Jerry Lundegaard (Macy) dreams of becoming rich like his father-in-law, Wade Gustafson (Harve Presnell), by investing in a parking garage development. To do this, he needs cash, and the best solution he can devise is to have his wife Jean (Kristin Rudrüd) kidnapped so that he can collect the ransom money, knowing that her wealthy father would more than willingly pay it for her safe return. To do this, he hires two career criminals, Gaear Grimsrud (Peter Stormare) and Carl Showalter (Buscemi). But things go wrong from the outset, and as the body count rises the events spiral out of Jerry's control. Pregnant police chief Marge Gunderson must use all her police cunning to bring those responsible to justice.

The film has garnered universal acclaim after its release, with the reviewing duo Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel crowning it the best film of 1996. It has maintained its status, given its unique characterisations, offbeat dark humour, and exaggerated local colour.

The film will be screened on Wednesday 14 September at 6pm at Narellan Library, Corner of Queen and Elyard Street, Narellan. Tea, coffee, and biscuits provided, but BYO snacks are more than welcome. Stay after the screening to share your thoughts about the film and join in a discussion about the many darkly humourous moments in the film.

Film Review—Pulp Fiction by Quentin Tarantino

Tarantino’s pop culture fueled, non-linear, black comedy crime drama. Divided into several loosely interconnected vignettes, the film revels in the colour of L.A.’s dark underbelly. We have Jules Winnfield (Samuel L. Jackson) and Vincent Vega (John Travolta), two hitmen who are running an errand to retrieve a brief case for their boss, Marsellus Wallace (Ving Rhames). Marsellus in the meantime is discussing the fall boxer Butch (Bruce Willis) will be taking in an upcoming fight, as well as negotiating with Vincent to take his wife (Uma Thurman) out to dinner to curb her loneliness. Add in a couple of small time robbers (Tim Roth and Amanda Plummer), Vincent's dealer (Eric Stoltz), Jules’ friend who helps them in a tight situation (Tarantino), Marsellus’ "cleaner" (Harvey Keitel) and Christopher Walken as a Vietnam veteran bearing heirlooms, you have a film that celebrates its pulpy origins.

What distinguishes Tarantino is both his eye for phenomenal set pieces as well as his ear for highly entraining dialogue in all his films. It may seem trivial, spurred by the everyday, the mundane, but therein lays its value, and never more than in Pulp Fiction. The entire film can be viewed as a mediation on meaning and value.  From the petty importance of a gold watch versus the mysterious contents of a briefcase, to a pastiche Bible passage, to the significance of what the French call a Quarter-pounder with Cheese to only be told that in America names don’t mean anything. The dialogue creates an ironic cycle where things that mean nothing are given vital importance by the interlocutors, only to be relegated as meaningless by the fluidity of language, yet which in turn creates meaning for the audience, who then ponder the meaning of any of it.

An engrossing and richly vital film, Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction proves its place as one of cinema’s finest achievements, with flawless writing, perfectly executed pacing, and its colorful yet relatable characters, all of which gives it sensational rewatch value.
Andreas

Film Review—A Most Violent Year

While trying to establish his heating oil business in 1981 New York, Abel Morales (Oscar Isaac) faces a difficult political situation. Being simultaneously investigate by the District Attorney while having his trucks hijacked at gunpoint (something he suspects of his rivals with ties to criminal enterprises) as well as facing threats from the unions if he does not adequately protect his drivers. Added to this is his responsibility to protect his family, with his wife Anna (Jessica Chastain), the daughter of gang leader, vowing to do something if he is unable to. All this comes to a head when Morales must pay for the site of his new plant within the confines of strict negotiations.

The film presents a richly dense plot, with many storylines folding in on each other. They seethe just under the surface, with tension rising, and the interactions between characters marked by an increasing uneasiness. Although resolving who is stealing his trucks and the completion of his payment for his new plant, there are many storylines, like his interactions with the D.A., that are transformed rather than resolved, adding to the richness of the implications of the films narrative.

After the film concludes there is the thought that there was more story to tell. This may sound like a criticism, the film not fulfilling all its narrative ends. On the contrary, it is one of the strongest points, and illustrates the films understated mastery. The wonderfully ambiguous ending (I resist calling it a conclusion) with its palpable tension leaving you wondering if an uneasy resolution has been made, is in keeping with the rest of the films restraint.
Andreas

TV Review—Sherlock Season 3

Sherlock is back! Not just for another season but from the grave. After the season two cliffhanger of “The Reichenbach Fall” the internet went wild with speculation about how Sherlock (Benedict Cumberbatch) had done it. The first episode roars into many possible explanations, with doubt cast on all versions. Although stimulating, the lack of full disclosure is a little disheartening, and does make you wonder whether the writers had worked themselves into a narrative corner.

However, the season does add many new twists, turns, and mysteries. There is also Watson’s (Martin Freeman) relationship with soon to be wife Mary (Amanda Abbington) and her secret past that is climactically revealed.  And in place of arch-nemesis Moriarty we have Charles Augustus Magnussen (Lars Mikkelsen), who provides a villain even more troubling and intelligent.

As with earlier seasons it features high paced, ludicrous plots, source material references galore, and many demonstrations of Sherlock’s abilities in brilliant visual flourishes. While enjoyable it is more exhausting than earlier seasons. Perhaps scheduling conflicts took their toll, or perhaps the writers are becoming a little too clever, even cocky. But the final episode is perhaps the best of the series, and the confidence of the writers is well justified, producing some great television in what has become a very competitive market.

Andreas

TV Review—True Detective Season One by Nic Pizzolatto

Marty Hart (Woody Harrelson) and Rust Cohle (Matthew McConaughey) are part of Louisiana State CID investigating a bizarre murder with occult symbols in 1995. In 2002, after they believe the case closed, they realize that they only scratched the surface, leading all the way to 2012, when a crime with many similarities brings in two new detectives and a difficult reconciliation between Hart and Cohle.

The humidity of Louisiana soaks every scene, and cutting between the three timeline story creates a crucible in which reflections on the past brings it unavoidably into the present. Life becomes a circle where the players are left in a spiral of repetition. McConaughey shines as the philosophical musing Cohle and contrasts well with Harrelson, who plays the morally questionable straight man in the duo.
Well written, supremely acted and perfectly set, True Detective is a prime example of the current Golden Age of Television and one of the greats of the McConaissance.
Andreas

TV Review – Fargo Season One by Noah Hawley

The Coen Brothers much acclaimed 1996 film Fargo has been reinvented into an original television series. Lester Nygaard (Martin Freeman) is a down and out insurance salesman, pestered by his wife and overshadowed by his younger brother. Lorne Malvo (Billy Bob Thornton), a hardened criminal for hire with an impish streak, decides to help Lester by killing his childhood tormentor. But soon the pressure gets too much for Lester, and the body count rises.

Although written and directed by Noah Hawley, the tone of the Coen Brothers (who act as producers) is retained. The chilled, bleak white of the Minnesota winter sets the template for the dry, sardonic humour of the exuberant, colourful cast of off kilter, socially questionable characters. Surprising and thrilling, it will have you saying darn tootin’! with every dropping body.

Andreas

Crime Fiction: A booklist

Seeing as this month is themed Question through the National Year of Reading, we thought we'd take a look at some mystery fiction that is all about juicy questions. This crime fiction book list pulls up novels with concealed murders, thefts and sins that are questioned and puzzled by protagonists to the end. Why not try some out this month. Here are ten we liked.

All Shots by Susan Conant

The Lost Memory of Skin by Russell Banks

Broken Hearts by Grace Monroe

The Priest by Gerard O'Donovan

The Secret in their Eyes by Eduardo Sacheri

Strictly Private Business by Michael Cronin

House Rules by Jodi Picoult

Caught by Harlan Coben

Horns by Joe Hill

Hell Gate by Linda Fairstein

Got your own to add? Comment below and we'll happily add it.

Leah Giarratano - aussie mystery writer

In her second novel, Giarratano has ticked the boxes for a successful crime thriller. A psychopathic killer escalating in violence; a loner cop coming to terms with brutal events in her past; a return to past haunts for a traumatised army veteran capable of extreme violence in defence of his family; a quirky, intelligent and off beat federal agent who also has a tragic past; and an authentic Australian setting in various Sydney suburbs. I got quite a thrill of recognition when some of the action took place around the Liverpool streets that I know well, in behind the Spotlight store no less, although I don't agree with her characterisation of the public library there! The book builds nicely to a satisfying conclusion and a tentative thawing of the thick wall of ice surrounding our protagonist. Well worth a try if you are looking for a new mystery author.

Wendy