Sunday, 3 July 2011

this week on 100 Films

4 new reviews were posted to 100 Films in a Year this week, as part of a sort-of-themed 'vengeance week'. They were...

Harry Brown (2009)
Michael Caine killing hoodies. How great does that sound? As a film premise, that’s awesome. If it doesn’t get you excited about seeing this movie, then what kind of film fan are you, eh? A mentally mature one, probably. But hush, don’t spoil our fun — those of us who may occasionally hanker for a morally simple form of voyeuristic vigilante justice want to see Sir Michael shooting yobs

High Plains Drifter (1973)
As the story progresses we get a gradual unveiling of a mystery in the town’s past, hinted at in flashbacks and dreams; who was responsible for it, what the others did about it — or didn’t do. It’s all revealed nicely across the course of the film, leading to a finely staged conclusion in a vision of Hell.

Jonah Hex (2010)
It’s difficult to know where to begin trying to praise Hex because, as I’ve implied, there isn’t much to praise. Unless you’re a 12-year-old boy, that is. Horses with Gatling guns! Giant cannons firing explosive balls! Corpses coming to life! Megan Fox’s corset-boosted cleavage! The undemanding pre-/early-teen is well catered for here. Possibly the undemanding child-minded adult too.

Law Abiding Citizen: Director's Cut (2009)
the setup makes it more interesting than your regular revenge movie... we’re presented with a situation where there are no clear-cut heroes and villains. Butler wants the killers of his family to suffer — normally, this vigilante is the hero. But... he’s a terrorist, normally the villain. Similar goes for Foxx — he’s the attorney, the good guy, he locks up criminals… but he’s part of a corrupt system that let a guilty man go free.

Also this week, the monthly update covering June, the halfway point of the year. Are we there already?! Crikey.

More next Sunday.

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