A post! Imagine that.
Am currently buried in school work. Not a pleasant experience. Midterms, why won't you go away?! However, my roommate got free passes to an advance screening of Veronica Guerin, and I couldn't pass that up. After seeing it, I'm really glad that I didn't. Oh, and if you are not familiar with her story, and don't want to be spoiled, don't read the Plot Outline on IMDB.com.
I was a bit skeptical going in to the film, since I really had almost no idea what it was about. I'd seen the trailer a ton of times at work, but there is only so much information you can actually get out of something when you can hardly hear it (preview was on the TV's in our lobby and you can never hear those things if there are any customers, or if popcorn is being made). I had pretty much forgotten that it was coming out, but I saw one preview on TV the other day. When my roommate mentioned it, I thought "why not, it's free?".
Also, I have to admit, that the producer/director thing was also a reason I was skeptical. I am not a big fan of Bruckheimer, although he has done some fantastic films, and I feel like Joel Schumacher is incredibly hit-or-miss (Batman and Robin, anyone?), so it definitely wasn't one of those times where I'd see a film just because so-and-so directed it. So, I went into it pretty much uninformed and with very low expectations.
I thought was an excellent film. Excellent performances, especially by Cate Blanchett and Ciarán Hinds (Colin Farrell's little cameo was adorable as well). The cinematography was beautiful, but part of that is just because Ireland is a lovely country. I thought their technique of using title cards at the beginning of the film to give a bit of backstory was fairly standard, but I loved the way they didn't resort to that in the end, when they told the fate of the convicted drug lords. I thought that using the voice over, instead of the standard "So-and-so was arrested..." text was a really neat dimension.
The pacing was also excellent. The film didn't really drag at all, and I thought that the circular narrative, which can sometimes backfire on a writer, worked really well in this film, in that it gave us something to think about, and possibly dread throughout the entire bulk of the story. In retrospect, it kind of reminds me of the beginning of American Beauty, where Kevin Spacey tells us that he's already dead, but we still go through the entire movie and are shocked when he's shot at the end.
And the entire montage of people finding out about her death was just fantastically done. The sound design in the scenes before that music begins (dumping the motorcycle, people getting out of their cars, etc.) was really emotionally wrenching, in that after such a shocking moment, everything was kind of muffled, sort of mimicking the emotional haze one might find themselves in after something horrible happens. And then just bringing in that song, just the vocal, no music? Just wonderful.
So, I'd say that I thoroughly enjoyed this film, especially on a technical level. It was nice to see all of the pieces that make a good film just fitting together so well. Plus, with excellent performances!
I would highly recommend seeing Veronica Guerin. I probably wouldn't have gone to see it, just based on the trailers (hey, I don't just have $8 to throw around, you know), and I am really glad that I went anyway. Plus, this is the type of movie that is destined to get some type of Oscar nomination, and from my perspective, it is always nice to have seen at least one of the films that is nominated in whatever category. :)
So, if you're looking for a movie to go to this weekend, and don't feel like seeing Kill Bill again, check out Veronica Guerin. Not that I'm saying KB is better or anything, but Tarantino hasn't had a film out in forever, and as a film student (and for that matter, a film fan), Kill Bill is something I've been looking forward to for a while. They are two different types of movies, totally un-comparable. It would be like comparing Crouching Tiger to The Magdalene Sisters. Or something like that. Oh, just go see Veronica Guerin!
And after the show, find a Borders and try their new Caramel Apple Crunch Latte. Yum, so delicious. And I don't even like coffee.
Man, I need some new icons.
I was a bit skeptical going in to the film, since I really had almost no idea what it was about. I'd seen the trailer a ton of times at work, but there is only so much information you can actually get out of something when you can hardly hear it (preview was on the TV's in our lobby and you can never hear those things if there are any customers, or if popcorn is being made). I had pretty much forgotten that it was coming out, but I saw one preview on TV the other day. When my roommate mentioned it, I thought "why not, it's free?".
Also, I have to admit, that the producer/director thing was also a reason I was skeptical. I am not a big fan of Bruckheimer, although he has done some fantastic films, and I feel like Joel Schumacher is incredibly hit-or-miss (Batman and Robin, anyone?), so it definitely wasn't one of those times where I'd see a film just because so-and-so directed it. So, I went into it pretty much uninformed and with very low expectations.
I thought was an excellent film. Excellent performances, especially by Cate Blanchett and Ciarán Hinds (Colin Farrell's little cameo was adorable as well). The cinematography was beautiful, but part of that is just because Ireland is a lovely country. I thought their technique of using title cards at the beginning of the film to give a bit of backstory was fairly standard, but I loved the way they didn't resort to that in the end, when they told the fate of the convicted drug lords. I thought that using the voice over, instead of the standard "So-and-so was arrested..." text was a really neat dimension.
The pacing was also excellent. The film didn't really drag at all, and I thought that the circular narrative, which can sometimes backfire on a writer, worked really well in this film, in that it gave us something to think about, and possibly dread throughout the entire bulk of the story. In retrospect, it kind of reminds me of the beginning of American Beauty, where Kevin Spacey tells us that he's already dead, but we still go through the entire movie and are shocked when he's shot at the end.
And the entire montage of people finding out about her death was just fantastically done. The sound design in the scenes before that music begins (dumping the motorcycle, people getting out of their cars, etc.) was really emotionally wrenching, in that after such a shocking moment, everything was kind of muffled, sort of mimicking the emotional haze one might find themselves in after something horrible happens. And then just bringing in that song, just the vocal, no music? Just wonderful.
So, I'd say that I thoroughly enjoyed this film, especially on a technical level. It was nice to see all of the pieces that make a good film just fitting together so well. Plus, with excellent performances!
I would highly recommend seeing Veronica Guerin. I probably wouldn't have gone to see it, just based on the trailers (hey, I don't just have $8 to throw around, you know), and I am really glad that I went anyway. Plus, this is the type of movie that is destined to get some type of Oscar nomination, and from my perspective, it is always nice to have seen at least one of the films that is nominated in whatever category. :)
So, if you're looking for a movie to go to this weekend, and don't feel like seeing Kill Bill again, check out Veronica Guerin. Not that I'm saying KB is better or anything, but Tarantino hasn't had a film out in forever, and as a film student (and for that matter, a film fan), Kill Bill is something I've been looking forward to for a while. They are two different types of movies, totally un-comparable. It would be like comparing Crouching Tiger to The Magdalene Sisters. Or something like that. Oh, just go see Veronica Guerin!
And after the show, find a Borders and try their new Caramel Apple Crunch Latte. Yum, so delicious. And I don't even like coffee.
Man, I need some new icons.