One thing that strikes me about this movie is that it is a LOT like a similarly themed King Arthur. Unlike the
Clive Owens version, however, the femme fatales in this movie are very, VERY deadly. Ok, Imogen Poots' character isn't
dangerous, but Olga Kurylenko (the devestatingly alluring Ukranian-born model perhaps better known for her roles in Quantum of Solace, Hitman and Max Payne),
more than makes up for it as Etain (or 'the Wolf' as she is often referred to in the movie) -- an invincable mute
Pict tracker that hunts down our fleeing Roman soldier
protagonists who are trying to reach the safety of their homeland or a
nearby fortress (whichever they can get to first). Sure, Kiera
Knightly is an awesome barbarian Guinevere, but Olga has a creepy menace
that Knightly doesn't quite acheive - with or without blue Wold
warpaint.
Anyway, the long and short of this movie is that it's
one part road trip, two parts cat & mouse, and all wrapped up in
a fun British-Roman setting. For some reason I really enjoy that
particular setting, turing the movie into a kind of historic-fantasy,
so it was an easy sell for me. But, of course, with most action flicks,
this one was also steeped in a disappointing predicatability.
In this film, our hero, Quintas Dias (Michael Fassbender), has a
pedigree in close combat as the son of a gladiator that earned his
freedom, so we know he's going to find a way to beat the odds as his
fellow soldiers are picked off one at a time by the pursuing
Pict tracking party.
One rather enjoyable break from the formula, however,
was the abandoning of gender roles that
typically haunt your typical action flick. Generally when you have a
strong male lead, he needs a strong male opposite to fight in
single combat at the end of the film -- ostensibly to give him macho
credibility even if the evil forces are ultimately lead by a
strong female leader. (Think what Willow would have been like if
Val Kilmar didn't have an evil general to fight at the end of
the movie -- complete with wicked skull mask -- and had to fight the
sorceress instead.) Generally, if there is a tough woman villain,
then we also have an equally tough woman fighter to play opposite her (e.g. Conan the Destroyer).
In this film, however, the
role of baddass evil fighter is played by Kurylenko's character, Etain.
Despite being a curvy model in real life, she is more than
a match for Fassbender (and any other men she meets along the way for
that matter) with her quick moves and impressive deadly pike.
Of course, he does get softened up a bit by having to fight other male combatants before he faces off against her, which is
kind of lame, but it is pretty clear that without a little luck, he'd have been carved up like all the rest.
Anyway, the point of this review is that this is a fun film. It doesn't have the alluring beauty of Crouching Tiger
Hidden Dragon or the epic grittiness of Gladiator, but it is still a good romp. I enjoyed it, and I think you probably will
too.
Movie to Skip: Brothers
I really want to give this movie another half star, but I have decided not to do it. You see, the issue of
PTSD and our military has been done in several movies lately. One excellent example of that is the 2010 Oscar winner for Best
Picture, Director, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing, Film Editing and Screenplay, The Hurt Locker.
That movie is one of those
excellent films where, after you're done with it, you really have to sit
down and think about it. And when it comes to the American
Ssoldier's experience in Iraq and Afghanistan (realizing that they are
two entirely different places with two sets of different,
albeit related, experiences), you can comfortably sit down and say: wow,
is there really any more to say about that? I get it.
Brothers wants to be that kind of movie. But it
doesn't quite get there. Don't get me wrong, I like Tobey
Maguire, Jake Gyllenhaal and Natalie Portman (not to mention a great
supporting performance by the always awesome Sam Shepard).
They're all great actors, and the subject matter is certainly worthy of
attention. The problem with the movie is that it
is incomplete, and the treatment of a very serious condition feels kind of trite. There is no real
conflict in the movie
except in the head of Maguire's character, Cpt. Cahill. And
unfortunately, while we do see some rather disturbing situations that
Cahill is forced into as a POW, there is not enough attention given to
those moments for us to truly begin to understand the trauma
that he has experienced. If we don't understand the trauma, then we
can't empathize, and his reactions when he returns to the
United States seem... exaggerated, which is NOT what this movie is trying
to accomplish. Contrast that with The Hurt Locker,
where we live in the sand and the danger alongside Sgt. James (Jeremy
Renner), and Cahill comes off as a mere charicature. That's sad.
I was disappointed with Brothers. There was
potential, but the movie didn't go far enough to make me
believe in it. I won't go so far as to say that it does a disservice to
our veterans who are actually living these experiences,
but I certainly don't think it goes far enough to truly capture their
plight. Skip this one and see The Hurt Locker instead.
It is a far superior movie.
