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‘Lincoln,’ ‘Master’ and ‘Hobbit’ could be year’s most important films |
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Wednesday, August 1, 2012 |
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By PATRICK HALL
The Wilson Post
Granted, there are still a few blockbusters to come this month and next, but arguably, the most important films of the year, in terms of awards and lasting impact, will be hitting theaters this winter.
Director Steven Spielberg’s biopic on Abraham Lincoln entitled, “Lincoln,” is set to open Nov. 16 and has a pretty spectacular cast, including the greatest actor alive, Daniel Day-Lewis, in the roll of the 16th President.
Written by Tony Kushner and an original screenplay by Paul Webb, the film is based on Doris Kearns Goodwin’s biography Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln.
It’s obviously unclear how much Spielberg will stick to the book’s themes, but given the fact we’ve had to put up with “Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter” this year, it will be nice to see the talented director take a serious look at one of our nation’s heroes.
With Day-Lewis leading the cast, his first film since he won an Oscar for Best Actor in 2007 (“There Will Be Blood”), you can bank on at least his otherworldly skill being the anchor of the film. |
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"The Dark Knight Rises" is an outstanding end to Nolan's vision |
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Friday, July 20, 2012 |
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By PATRICK HALL
The Wilson Post
Director and co-writer Christopher Nolan concludes his Batman trilogy with a finale that maybe falls short of masterpiece “The Dark Knight” but delivers such an outstanding conclusion, it’s only fault is being less-than perfect.
In “The Dark Knight Rises,” which picks up eight years after 2008’s “Dark Knight,” Gotham City is without organized crime and believes Batman responsible for District Attorney Harvey Dent’s (Aaron Eckhart) death.
Thus Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) is a recluse in his mansion, visibly incapable of adjusting to a life without Batman. Trouble brews as the unstoppable mercenary Bane (Tom Hardy) moves in with an elaborate plot to turn Gotham into a chaotic mob-rule “society.”
At almost 3 hours long, “Rises” begins with scenes that jump around introducing Bane, new gung-ho Gotham Police officer John Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) the mysterious "cat burglar" Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway), businesswoman Miranda Tate (Marian Cotillard) and the usual suspects we already know: butler Alfred (Michael Cane) and Police Commissioner Jim Gordon (Gary Oldman). |
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Nolan’s Batman trilogy poses ethical questions |
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Wednesday, July 18, 2012 |
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By PATRICK HALL
The Wilson Post
Friday marks the completion of director Christopher Nolan’s trilogy of Batman films with “The Dark Knight Rises” and his first two installments look at real world terrorism, the pursuit of bringing them to justice, and whether sacrificing an ethical code in the process is justifiable.
Since the start in 2005, with “Batman Begins,” Nolan has set Bruce Wayne/Batman (Christian Bale) against villains and their schemes that are reminiscent of real world terrorism.
Plots by villains in the films include bioterrorism in “Begins” to blowing up buildings, using suicide bombers and holding large passenger ferries hostage with bombs, in “The Dark Knight.”
Following 9/11, anthrax attacks killed five people and infected 22, terror suspects were arrested in Denver for attempting to poison water supplies and terrorists have been using suicide bombers and blowing up buildings for decades. Nolan's films ask the tough question of whether unethical means are allowable when hunting down such evil individuals. |
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'Amazing Spider-Man’ is familiar, yet pleasantly new |
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Thursday, July 5, 2012 |
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By PATRICK HALL
The Wilson Post
Perhaps it’s too early for a reboot of the Spider-Man franchise, which Sony began in 2002 with “Spider-Man,” but the restart with “The Amazing Spider-Man” features a side of Peter Parker that’s welcome and more interesting, making his web-slinging hero side, that much more powerful.
Sony went back to square-one with ‘Amazing,’ starting with Peter Parker, played by Andrew Garfield, watching his scientist father and his mother leave unexpectedly. Peter grows up with his Aunt May (Sally Field) and Uncle Ben (Martin Sheen).
Peter meets a scientist, Dr. Curt Connors (Rhys Ifans), who worked with Peter’s father Richard on cross-genetic research. He also develops a friendship and love interest in Gwen Stacy, played by Emma Stone.
But when Connors uses a revolutionary serum that he and Peter co-create to repair his amputated right arm, using reptile DNA, the good doctor turns into a misguided monster, “The Lizard.”
The film separates itself well from the previous trilogy, showing a more troubled Peter Parker than before. While Tobey Maguire’s Parker was smitten by his love interest, he isn’t necessarily displayed as a teen struggling with the obvious issues that would come along from losing his parents so early.
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