Kiwi Film Review: Killing Them Softly

IMDB: 7.1/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 79%
Roger Ebert: 2/4 starts

Stars: Brad Pitt, Ray Liotta, Richard Jenkins, James Gandolfini
Directed By: Andrew Dominik
Written By:Andrew Dominik(screenplay), George V. Higgins(novel)
Release Date: 30 November 2012
Described by IMDB as: "Three dumb guys who think they're smart rob a Mob protected card game, causing the local criminal economy to collapse. Brad Pitt plays the enforcer hired to track them down and restore order. Killing Them Softly also features Richard Jenkins , James Gandolfini, Ray Liotta, Scoot McNairy, Ben Mendelsohn, and Vincent Curatola. Max Casella, Trevor Long, Slaine and Sam Shepard also make appearances."

I've heard a lot of mixed reviews on this film, but I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Even from the very beginning its not necessarily a movie filled with action-packed sequences or tons of information, but it somehow keeps your interest throughout the entire film.

The acting in this movie is really impressive. Brad Pitt delivers a really great performance and I have to say that Scoot McNairy(who played Frankie) gave a really impressive performance, especially in the scenes between him and Brad Pitt. He was also in Argo earlier this fall in which he gave a really great performance as well. I also thought that Ben Mendelsohn(who played Russell) did an incredible job. He did a great job in the parts where he was high(which was practically every time we saw him)

I really need to talk about the cinematography because it was absolutely stunning. Trying to explain without spoilers is going to be difficult but I'll attempt it. There are two scenes that really stand out in my mind, but the entire film is beautifully shot. The first was when Frankie(McNairy) and Russell(Mendelsohn)  were in a house after their heist and were getting high and Russell keeps drifting in and out of consciousness. The colours and close-ups are really great, and Russell's acting really puts it over the edge. The second scene is the one that I'm trying to explain without spoilers, lets just say its a scene involving Jackie(Pitt) and Markie(Ray Liotta) where slow motion comes into play. Thats all I'm going to stay because I don't want to give anything away, but trust me, really beautiful. 

I heard some people say that they kept beating a dead horse with trying to make comparisons to the American economic collapse, in 2008, and the mob economic collapse at the same time, because of this heist. I really only think thats true if you know a lot about politics. It really took me a while to figure out why they had so many Obama and Bush news voiceovers, for the first half of the movie I really thought it was just to give you a timeframe of when this was taking place, but I couldn't figure out why it mattered. It honestly wasn't until the last scene in the bar that it hit me. Granted, I'm probably a little thick, but I went to see it twice and both times the people I went with said the same thing, so at least it wasn't just me. I was happy that they put so many references in so I could fully get it, but I do understand that if you figured it out the first time it could get a little annoying. 

I wouldn't recommend this film to just anyone, but I would recommend it to anyone who really enjoys films that don't need to be action-packed the whole time. It has enough talent, story, and cinematography skills to keep you interested the entire time, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I also expect some Oscar nods from this one.

I give it a 8.5/10. Really interesting, a few twists and turns, overall a really great film.

Kiwi Film Review: Moneyball

IMDB Rating : 8.2/10

Stars: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Robin Wright.

I saw this movie earlier today and its all I’ve been able to think about since. Such a great heart warming story. The acting and writing was fantastic, and the thing I love most about these movies is that they are “based on a true story.” It starts off with Billy Beane’s(Pitt) team (The Oakland A’s) losing yet another last game of the season. His luck then continues to go downhill as he loses 3 or 4 of his top players and is has to find a new line up to try and win the world series with only a fraction of the finances that the other bigger teams have to work with. Then enters Peter Brand (Hill) who comes up with a new strategy in choosing players, which turns the whole sport on its head.

The acting was wonderful, Brad Pitt has really continued to show that he’s more then a pretty face, although he really does have that going for him ;), and he really is a brilliant actor. Jonah Hill continues to play “that awkward kid” perfectly well, it was interesting to see him not able to rely on his humour to charm the audience. Although, I’m willing to bet that his intimidation towards Brad Pitt’s character wasn’t entirely acting. Then you have Hoffman who plays any character he’s given brilliantly. Even though he had a smaller role he had no problem giving the intensity he’s well known for. So many great heart felt moments, my favorites involving Billy Bean’s daughter, she really did an amazing job singing and playing guitar, so shout out to Kerris Dorsey! Overall I’d have to agree with IMDB and give this movie about an 8/10.

Definitely a must-see, this is not just a baseball movie people!

Kiwi Film Review: Tree Of Life

IMDB Rating: 7.6/10
Roger Ebert : 4/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 85%

Stars: Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, and Jessica Chastain

Written & Directed by : Terrence Malick

Two Brad Pitt movies in a row!

The movie starts off in the 50’s where you find out that Mr. and Mrs. O’Brien (Pitt and Chastain) have just lost one of their sons. Skip to, what I assume is, present day where Jack (Penn) is having trouble in his life due to what he grew up with as a child. The camera angles and editing in the scenes are perfect and interesting. I loved the whole “how the earth came to be” part of the film. It was all so beautifully orchestrated. Plus, fuck yeah dinosaurs! It honestly took me until the volcano’s to understand what was happening, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from the screen, it was just so beautiful.

Then we get to the more difficult part, the harsher parts of life. Jack, growing up under a strict father, becomes more rebellious, but he never strays so far that he loses his guilty feeling for whatever he has done. It was interesting to see Brad Pitt in such an aggressive role, but it was also pretty difficult to watch. He did a truely great job, as did the rest of the cast. Its really easy to see how times have changed in the last 60 years. The amount of discipline seen in this movie was normal in that time, but I think its clear that it doesn’t always work the way Mr. O’Brien(Pitt) wanted it to. Jack especially grew to resent his father even praying to “God” for him to die a couple of times. Mr. O’Brien seemed to really want the feeling of love from his children, but even he wasn’t stupid enough to see that it wasn’t always there. Mrs. O’Brien(Chastain) then had the difficult job of trying to provide the children with a form of love they could understand. It must’ve been so difficult to sit back and watch your husband give such a hard punishment back then. The acting by the children was fantastic. All three of the O’Brien children were just wonderful. I love seeing new child actors doing such a great job. According to IMDB this was all 3 of their first films, which is pretty impressive! This is the third movie I’ve seen Jessica Chastain in, in the last month, and she’s really been choosing some great films, and has really shown her skill and diversity.

The only complaint I have is that I wish they had shown a little more of an older Jack (Penn) and shown the effects later in life. Also, did I miss how his brother died, because I don’t remember learning the details of that. I heard Penn say that he died when he was 19 but thats about it, I think I might’ve missed a few things in the whispers.

The story and writing was great. I think its important for this movie that the writing and directing were both done by Terrence Malick, as I’m not sure it would’ve had the same effect if it was one person trying to see another persons vision. This film really shows how important life is, and how easily it can be taken away.

Overall I’d give this movie a 7.5/10. Great score, great writing, great acting.