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Reviewspreviews
Libertine
The Libertine is a product of an insecure frame of mind of John Wilmot, the Second Earl of Rochester, a soldier, a poet and a satirist with intentions to shock, horrify and raise the feeling of repugnance in 17th century England.
Johnny Depp is the abhorred earl who clearly states at the beginning of the film, “You will not like me; I don’t want you to like me.” And throughout its 112 minutes run time, we are made sure to feel that – not because of the shallowness or dubious behavior of the character but because of the murky pointlessness of the whole plot.
The film focuses on the latter part of the earl’s life when he is banished to the country and married to a rich and suffering heiress (Roseamund Pike). He is then called out of exile by King Charles II (John Malkovich) to write upon the rise of the English theater.
With no intention of glorifying the king, he instead wanders from one theater to another with his drinking buddies when his attention is captivated by Elizabeth Berry (Samantha Morton). She is an under-appreciated stage actress with ambitions to rise and conquer the stage of England. He takes her under his wing and subsequently falls for her and to his doom.
The film has been directed by debutante director Lawrence Dunmore and adapted by Stephen Jeffery who also wrote the
original play doing a moderately good job with excellent dialogues. Beside Stephen Jaffrey, John Malkovich returns from the original play where he played the role of the Earl. He’s also one of the
producers of the film.
Depp gives an expected performance: it is only his charm and charisma that holds the audience’s attention, already hanging by a thread. The film is rated R for obvious reasons. — Farheen Jawaid
Scary Movie 4The fourth instalment of Scary Movie: Scary Movie 4 brings together scenes from a whole host of Hollywood’s scariest, including The Grudge, The Village and War of the Worlds. Directed by veteran director David Zucker, the movie stars Anna Faris, Craig Bierko and Regina Hall, and includes celebrity cameos from the likes of Carmen Electra, Shaquille O’Neal and Dr Phil.
After being responsible for the death of the love of her life in a freakish boxing accident, Cindy Campbell (Faris) is trying to get her life back on track. After taking up a job as a nurse for an elderly lady, things seemingly take a turn for the better when she accidentally meets her new neighbour, Tom Ryan (Bierko), and falls for him. However, Cindy soon discovers that the house that she has just moved into is haunted by the soul of a young boy searching for answers. Now, along with her previously deceased pal, Brenda (Hall), she must find out what killed the boy and learn the identity of his father to put his soul at ease. Making matters worse, giant alien tripods invade Earth, putting mankind at mortal risk.
Scary Movie 4 fails to live up to the hype. The large number of recent Hollywood mimics results in a ragbag association of ideas, rather than a full-fledged movie. However, an excellent performance by the ever-impressive Farris, playing the dim-witted yet lovable Cindy, along with humour at the expense of Michael Jackson and the American president ensures that despite its shortcomings, all is not lost. Overall, Scary Movie 4 is, at best, a three-star flick. — Amyn Bhamani
The MatadorPierce Brosnan sheds his Bond image in The Matador and delivers one of the finest performances of his career. If James Bond is perfect to the core, then Julian Noble is quite the opposite. Brosnan is so likable in this new avatar that after watching the movie, one cannot imagine any other actor playing the role with such panache.
Julian Noble is a hit-man, a loser who confesses that he doesn’t have a home. He keeps bouncing from city to city and mostly remains in the company of alcohol and hookers. Thus secluded from the rest of the world, he has even lost his ability to carry out a sensible conversation. One night in a bar in Mexico City, he comes across a travelling salesman, Danny (Greg Kinnear), and in a state of having had one-too-many drinks, he shares his life’s secrets with Danny. Danny reciprocates by revealing something about his own life and so, two men from two different worlds come together in an unexpected bond of friendship. There are also a couple of other characters and sub-plots that run simultaneously to Julian’s story.
The movie is laced with some well-executed comedy but undoubtedly, the soul of it all is Pierce Brosnan. Although the story keeps fluctuating from one focal point to another, it is only Brosnan’s intriguing performance that keeps one’s interest intact right till the end. Greg Kinnear also does full justice to his one-dimensional character but fails to make an impact in the presence of Brosnan’s towering performance. — Azeem Haider
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