FILM | Reviews
DRAMA WHAT RICHARD DID (15) 88min ●●●●●
A weighty mix of suspense, thriller and sombre social commentary, this Irish drama follows the fallout from a teen party in the drunken aftermath of which a boy is beaten and killed. Lenny Abrahamson’s film is based on Kevin Power’s 2008 novel Bad Day in Blackrock, which in turn drew its inspiration from a real-life case that shocked Dublin in 2000. In this fictionalised version, the focus is Richard (Jack
Reynor), whose good looks and prowess in sport and academic areas alike make him everybody’s golden boy. But Richard has his Achilles' heel: accustomed to getting whatever he wants, he is thrown when his new girlfriend shows signs of pining for her ex, Conor. Performances are strong, with Reynor in particular raising his
character’s tension levels gradually towards a Hulk-like state of terror and rage. But it must be said that that build is very, very slow, because the film is very, very slow. It feels almost impolite to critique the narrative pace of such an earnest and thoughtful study of moral responsibility – but it is hard to keep hold of the momentum, so little is there in the way of sub- plotting or leavening wit. (Hannah McGill) ■ GFT, Glasgow, Fri 11–Thu 17 Jan.
DRAMA MIDNIGHT’S CHILDREN (TBC) 148min ●●●●●
Salman Rushdie’s Booker Prize-winning novel is a love letter to India, forgiving its flaws and celebrating its hopes. Deepa Mehta’s meandering, soft-centred screen version favours sentimental soap opera but gradually gains in emotional power as it builds into a moving account of a man whose life reflects all the growing pains of a newly independent nation. Rushdie provides the wry narration over a handsome-
looking film that stretches from Kashmir and Agra in the 1940s to Karachi, Dacca and then New Delhi in the 1970s. Saleem Sinai is one of the children born on the stroke of midnight on August 15, 1947, the moment India declared its independence from British rule. When he is born, a well-meaning nurse swaps him with Shiva, the offspring of a wealthy couple. The film touches upon significant historical events but Mehta
seems more drawn towards the heart-tugging emotions of Saleem’s journey rather than the bigger picture. Satya Bhabha as the adult Saleem brings a good deal of charm and vulnerability to his character and is surrounded by a solid ensemble cast. Solid may ultimately be the best word for this pleasing, middlebrow adaptation of Rushdie’s ‘unfilmable’ book. (Allan Hunter) ■ Selected release from Wed 26 Dec.
FANTASY DRAMA LIFE OF PI (PG) 127min ●●●●●
Yann Martel’s wildly imaginative, though long thought unfilmable Booker Prize-winning 2001 novel is here treated to a ravishing 3D cinematic adaptation by filmmaker Ang Lee. Lee, who has previously transformed a wide variety of literary subjects – Sense and Sensibility, Hulk, Brokeback Mountain – into cinematic gold and who appears to be able to turn his hand to any film genre – martial arts in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, western in Ride With the Devil, espionage/erotica in Lust, Caution – has created such a fabulously beautiful – and faithful – vision of Martel’s novel one wonders how anyone could ever have thought the source material unsuitable for the big screen. The abiding image of Martel’s extraordinary tale is that of the eponymous young Indian
boy, Pi, and a ferocious Bengali tiger, oddly named Richard Parker, lost at sea together on a lifeboat after a ship transporting Pi’s father’s zoo full of animals sinks in the Pacific Ocean. But there’s a lot more to the book than a battle of wills and claws in a confined space. Indeed, as Lee’s film reminds us, the book is a flight of fantasy that also takes in storms, sea monsters and a fantastic island, not to mention some crafty narrative slights of hand that illustrate the overarching concern of Martel’s novel: the importance of imagination and storytelling in our lives.
The tale of the castaways is bookended by middle-aged Pi recounting his fantastic story to an initially incredulous novelist who’s interested in turning it into a book. Though necessary to the telling of the tale, these scenes feel somewhat tame in comparison to the grandeur of those on the high seas, which are by turns thrilling, funny, moving and awe- inspiring. One might argue that is the point of the book and now the film. (Miles Fielder) ■ General release from Thu 20 Dec.
CHILDREN'S ANIMATION TINKER BELL AND THE SECRET OF THE WINGS (U) 75min ●●●●●
Enjoying a considerably more successful solo career than most animated characters could muster, Tinker Bell has now featured in four feature films in her own right, without making any reference to her original role in JM Barrie’s Peter Pan.
Released straight to DVD and download in the States, Tinker Bell and the Secret of the Wings has been given a lick of 3D and flies into UK cinemas to mop up some pre-Xmas business. The slight plot sees Tinker Bell (Mae Whitman) venturing into the
woods, only to find that her wings have developed a magical sparkle. Her attempts to find out why this is lead her to discover a secret threatening the very existence of the fairy kingdom.
Disney certainly know how to target such product to their limited but lucrative audience of tiara sporting little darlings, even down to an over-qualified vocal cast including Anjelica Huston and Timothy Dalton. It’s professionally crafted fluff, disposable as chewing gum, but likely to hit the spot for the primary-school age-group the film is aimed squarely at. Just don’t expect any of the multi-layered humour that Pixar and Dreamworks have made their own. (Eddie Harrison) ■ General release from Fri 14 Dec.
92 THE LIST 13 Dec 2012–24 Jan 2013