Mr Jones Review TIFF 2020
The Plot
An aspiring young welsh journalist travels to Moscow in the hopes of uncovering the truth behind the apparent utopia of Stalin’s Soviet Union. The discoveries he makes will forever change him and the world.
The Good
Recent years has seen a glut of films released finally exploring history’s most infamous ‘forgotten genocide’ the Holodomor, Stalin’s man made famine in the Ukraine. It’s a crime that killed millions but has only gradually become an accepted historical fact by a world that long found it politically inconvenient to acknowledge the true weight of this particular atrocity. Of the many films seeking to shine a light into that particular dark corner of human history Mr Jones is perhaps one of the most effective and well executed.
Permanently rising star James Norton delivers a compelling performance as real life British political aid and journalist Gareth Jones. His quest to expose the truth behind the incredible tales of soviet prosperity under Stalin’s brutal regime take him form the comfortable safety of Lloyd George’s offices to the desolate snow covered wastelands of the Soviet Union. Speaking softly in a perfectly honed welsh accent Norton captures the spirit of a man determined to seek the truth but swift traumatized by the horrifying reality he uncovers.
It’s always difficult to approach issues like the Holodomor on screen, because the sheer scale of suffering is not easily captured on screen. Following Mr Jones path to confronting this is a good way of easing audiences gradually into confronting this and putting them in a position to truly feel like an observer of mass starvation. Accompanying him on his nightmarish descent is deeply impactful.
Strong supporting turns from the excellent talents of Vanessa Kirby and Peter Sarsgaard also inject particular urgency into the film’s poignant rumination on the question of what it means to be a journalist and what price is worth paying for the truth. Jones’s own dilemma in whether to reveal his grim discoveries to the world, knowing it would lead to inevitably murderous repercussions from the regime, are effectively dramatized on screen.
Ultimately further tying the film’s narrative together by setting it against the backdrop of George Orwell drawing upon Mr Jones exploits to inspire his literary classic Animal Farm places the importance of his determined truth-seeking in further cultural context.
The Bad
The film’s uncompromising bleakness can be difficult viewing at times and this is certainly not a film for those who prefer to be merely entertained by cinema. While the film’s early portions offer a soft spoken comfort and appealing political intrigue, the grim shift in tone as Jones quest for the truth proceeds is equally traumatic for the character and audiences alike.
Obviously those horrifying revelation is the true purpose of the film, but it is perhaps only fair to warn audiences what kind of journey they are embarking on and the truly dark places it will force them to go. Confronting evil and human tragedy on an unimaginable scale is never easy, no matter how well told the story is.
The Ugly Truth
Mr Jones is an unflinching reminder of the true human cost of one of the worst acts of political evil of the 20th Century. It is a poignant tribute to one man’s fearless integrity and the millions of lives cruelly extinguished by the unimaginable evil he sought to expose. It is difficult but compelling viewing.
Review by Russell Nelson
Shiva Baby Review TIFF 2020
The Plot
While attending a Jewish funeral service with her overbearing parents a college student runs unexpectedly into her secret sugar daddy with increasingly awkward consequences.
The Good
Shiva Baby bursts with neurotic energy and a raw nervous wit. The film’s simple premise unfolds gradually with the irresistibly captivating appeal of a surprisingly well catered car crash. It’s a cringe worthy delight to be vicariously thrust into small intimate rooms with a constant array of shamelessly pushy parents, overachieving friends and judgmental relatives
Rachel Sennott is by turns alluring and deeply awkward as Danielle, the young woman struggling to hold it together while being slowly crushed under the constant weight of well-intentioned meddling criticism. She manages to maintain audience’s sympathy for her character, despite her own painfully obvious flaws. It quickly becomes clear that her seemingly listless selfishness is largely a response to the neurotic pressure cooker she inhabits. Giving her bad decisions and their painfully amusing consequences a little more of a sympathetic edge. It’s easier to tolerate anyone’s vices and immature behaviour when you’ve spent time in the company of their persistently overbearing family.
There have been many films that explore the uniquely painful uncertainty of people struggling to find their place in the world as college draws to a close and the daunting prospect of the real world and inescapable adulthood beckons. Perhaps The Graduate is the best known example of this and most clearly established just how much sexual identity and misadventure forms a part of this experience. Shiva Baby continues that tradition but with a uniquely Jewish twist.
In a very literal sense Sennott’s character Danielle is being confronted by her past, in the provocative form of her flirty former best friend Maya, and the embarrassing uncertainty of her own future. Watching her flail helplessly between the two and reach misguidedly for validation and affection is compelling viewing.
Molly Gordon is a an excellent fit for Maya, providing both the perfect confident overachieving counterpoint to Danielle and inject fresh dimension of awkwardness with the pairs simmering sexual history. It adds even more nervous tension to scenes already crammed with it by the unexpected and inescapable encounter with her shameless sugar daddy, played Danny Deferrari.
Likewise Polly Draper and Fred Melamed are sensationally effective as Danielle’s parents, embodying the very best and worst clichés Polly Draper perhaps deserves most praise for treading a fine line to make Danielle’s fast talking and relentless mother by turns both shamelessly demanding and genuinely caring. That careful balance between tactless outspokenness and actual best intentions is perhaps the most easily identifiable spirit of quintessentially Jewish comedy.
The Bad
For some people Rachel Sennott’s character might be just a little too much the architect of her own misfortune. The more unsavoury and inescapably selfish aspects of her character might push more squeamish audiences away. Likewise the film’s constant barrage of social anxiety and awkward situations might not appeal as much to those with less of a natural appetite for witnessing the misfortunes of others. There’s a rich vein of comedy to be mined from such situations but it’s also genuinely uncomfortable viewing.
The Ugly Truth
Shiva Baby is a rampantly sensuous and anxious slice of filmmaking that throws audiences into a rollercoaster of social awkwardness and uniquely Jewish culture. Provocative performances and tight scripting make it a compelling ride.
Review by Russell Nelson
One Night In Miami Review TIFF 2020
The Plot
A fictional account of one incredible night where icons Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Sam Cooke and NFL superstar Jim Brown gathered to discuss their roles in the civil rights movement and the monumental cultural upheaval of the 1960s.
The Good
Capturing the rare magic of this instantly recognisable collection of the most important cultural figures in African American history is a weighty responsibility. In 2020 under a climate of rising global tensions and growing uncertainty there is a particular sense of urgent significance to collectively examining and celebrating these figures.
One Night In Miami instantly succeeds in not just providing cliché impersonations of these famous men, but in giving them each a nuanced and fully human portrayal. Weaving together the lives of four men each remarkable in their own right but each speaking from very different places.
Eli Gorre is devastatingly charismatic as Cassius Clay, capturing the physical prowess and uniquely flamboyant wit of a young 22 year old Muhammad Ali. Kinglsey Ben-Adir likewise offers a variously soft spoken and fiery sincerity to his portrayal Malcolm X. Leslie Odom Jr and Aldis Hodge round out the astonishing quartet of performances as musical master Sam Cooke and Jim Brown. They each add a different flavour of passion and combine to create a genuine warm friendship full of wry charm and earnest affection.
There’s an innate fascination to seeing these landmark historical figures sharing even imagined intimate moments. These invented exchanges casually explore profound and complex subject matter in exactly the way the best late night conversations among close friends often seems uniquely capable of.
The film delves into the complex spectrum of attitudes and ideals existing in the African American community during a time of immense struggle and turmoil. Each of these figures reflect a different perspective on the struggle to change the lived experiences of a community, at times flaring into genuine angry tension and conflict. It’s perhaps more important today than ever to see four different men locked in earnest debate and exchange of deeply passionate ideas.
The Bad
One of the few criticisms you can make of One Night in Miami is that it’s perhaps a little reckless to invent so many private moments for people whose lives have been so extensively publicly documented. You could make the same criticism of almost any other historical biopic though and the film is very clear in its intention to capture the spirit of these men and what they represent rather than to speak explicitly on their behalf.
It’s may also be a little too tempting for audiences to immediately treat the period of history being explored on screen as completely interchangeable with the present day. Obviously much of the subject matter and themes explored seems deeply pertinent to an increasingly traumatic current climate, but our world today is not without its own unique myriad complexities. The voices of history speak to us vividly today but they cannot answer all our questions for us.
The Ugly Truth
One Night In Miami is well-crafted, poignant and powerful. Four sensational leading performances capture a nuanced snapshot of historical icons and a turning point in modern American history. It’s a celebration of that legacy of change packed with valuable wisdom and heart.
Review by Russell Nelson
Spike Lee Documentary Opens Toronto Film Festival 2020
Director Spike Lee’s new film American Utopia has opens this year’s down scaled Toronto International Film Festival 2020. The film is a record of Talking Heads front man David Byrne’s 2019 concert show and played at two open air drive-in cinemas on Thursday.
Only film fans based in the city are allowed to attend physical screenings at this year’s event, which will see many of its offerings screened online. This year’s London Film Festival will also use a similar “hybrid” model.
TIFF 2020 will showcase 50 feature films. Although there will be no red carpet premieres, celebrity guests will be appearing virtually to introduce and discuss their wares.
Cameron Bailey, Toronto’s artistic director and co-head explained
“We still wanted to do a festival. It’s important for our audience and I think we just all need some inspiration that art can provide.”
American Utopia will also screen at the New York and London Film Festivals next month ahead of its HBO premiere on 17 October.
Despite being pared down this year, Toronto will still play its customary role as a launch pad for films on the path to potential awards success.
Mulan Remake Heading To Disney Plus
One of the many blockbusters forced to postpone their release date following the coronavirus outbreak, Mulan is now confirmed to be skipping the cinema and heading straight to Disney Plus.
The live action remake of the 1998 animated film was supposed to hit cinemas in early March, but it got pulled as the Covid-19 outbreak caused countries around the world to go into different stages of lockdown.
Since the initial delay, the movie was repeatedly delayed and then removed from Disney’s calendar entirely – but now it’s been announced that it’s coming to Disney’s streaming service and a paid premiere event.
The long-awaited film, which stars Yifei Liu as Mulan, will be available on 4 September in markets where Disney Plus is available for $29.99 (£22.00). Though it may still get a cinema release in territories where Disney Plus isn’t current available and assuming cinemas aren’t still subject to local lock down restraints.
Good news for the long troubled production and fans eager to see the huge budget reboot of the classic tale.