Driving Lessons (2006)

One wonders if we'd have any kind of British film industry at all if it weren't for Richard Curtiss. I don't think he had specific involvement with Driving Lessons, a film based for the most part on the real life relationship between Dame Peggy Ashcroft and a young man who answered a job ad to help her, but the whole thing reeks of the sort of film that would normally have Hugh Grant grinning inanely all the way through it.

The basic plot has potential but alas, what should have been an excellent, classy look at life lessons across the generation gap, turns into yet another old-fashioned 'quaint', too-ridiculous-to-be-in-any-way-believable, British movie-by-numbers.

Driving Lessons has the usual British stalwarts in minor roles, with Julie Walters and Rupert Grint ('the ginger one' from the Harry Potter movies), playing the two main leads who have to carry most of the film on their shoulders. They're both good actors but, disappointingly, Walters appears to have taken the 'eccentric old actress' cue from the script as an excuse to recycle her Mrs Overall character from Acorn Antiques, and something about it doesn't gel. The usually reliable Laura Linney has also been roped in for a minor role as the Grint character's hypocritical, Bible-bashing mother, presumably to try and put American bums on seats for the theatrical release, but it's a performance that Linney could have dialled in by phone - there's nothing here that we haven't seen her do many times before in previous films.

The story does have its moments, but just as you think it's going to transcend the Curtiss-like formula, bucket loads of sentimentality are thrown in drowning all attempts at any kind of subtlety. In one particularly ridiculous scene, a group of silent church goers react to Walter's character loudly bursting into Church somewhat the worse for drink as if the Lord himself had graced them with His presence and burst into song and cheering. This may be entertainment and fantasy for the blue rinse rom-com brigade who will applaud anything so long as it's safe and doesn't feature anything too unpleasant, but for the rest of us it's just nauseatingly poor scripting.

It's all such a shame, because there are moments, particularly when Walters plays her character less for laughs and more for sympathy, when the film shows real poignancy, but such moments are invariably shattered by moments of silliness that undo any attempts at believability.

Looking back (it is New Year's Eve after all!) on this year's best films I see a whole host of wonderful films from Europe that I've enjoyed this year. But I'm struggling to find a single British one. We've lost our way, seemingly determined to make the same formulaic stuck-in-the-past 'gentle social comedies' that we've been making non-stop ever since The Full Monty was a surprise American box office success. It's time to move on, and Driving Lessons is yet another weak example of a genre that is well past its 'Sell by' date.

The picture transfer is excellent, as one would expect from a film that was only launched at the box office a few weeks ago. Extra's -wise there's a first-time director's commentary that's so dull and pointless I had to stop it less than half an hour in. It offers no insight at all, with the director repeatedly telling us what we're seeing on screen and explaining what it means as if we're five year old children who can't understand the very obvious images we're being shown. There's an embarrassingly bad Q&A session with the two main stars, embarrassing because the smarmy, gauche interviewer hasn't got a clue and appears to be auditioning for a part in a send-up of children's Saturday morning television, and the trailer for the film is also included.

If you liked Mrs Henderson Presents... or Love Actually, or any of those movies starting Hugh Grant over the last few years, then this is probably worth a rental. For the rest of us this should carry a warning: "Learner director ahead" and be avoided.

Ma Vrai Vie a Rouen (2002)

Ma Vrai Vie a Rouen (also known as Ma Vie or My Life on Ice) is a touching, if rather low budget and parochial, teenage coming-of-age story.

It's also, in part, a gay 'coming out' story, albeit a very subtle one that only really reveals itself in the last few minutes. Unfortunately Paradise Peccadillo have done their usual 'marketing for gays' job on the DVD sleeve and given it the kind of soft-core porn cover that may attract the pink pound (although such purchasers are likely to be disappointed at the lack of bare flesh on display!) but will have the potential mainstream audience quickly looking elsewhere for something to watch.

Which is a shame, when a film is as exhuberant, 'feel good' and downright charming as this one.

Etienne (Jimmy Tavares) is a young teen living with his single mother following the accidental death (or possible suicide!) of his stepfather. Etienne is a bit of a loner, spending most of his time ice-skating or just hanging out with his best friend, the far more worldly-wise, and traditionally good-looking Ludovic.

On his sixteenth birthday, timed as the film is about to start, Etienne has been given a movie camera from his grandmother who's won the lottery, and film-shooting becomes his new obsession.

Very much like Blair Witch, Ma Vie is shot as if it were cinema verité, with the film we watch being the footage that Etienne himself has shot on his new camera. It's an interesting device, albeit one that at times seems rather TOO cute as we witness the camera accidentally falling over, incorrectly positioned viewpoints, the owner struggling with a new 'Is it on?' remote control etc. as the film progresses. However this style of filming does help give the story a truthfulness that isn't let down by the very natural performances of its main leads.

As Etienne's prowess with the camera improves, he starts filming, in an almost stalker-like fashion, his good looking Geography teacher, before affecting a match between the teacher and his mother who go on to become an item. But were Etienne's motives entirely altruistic?

Interspersed with film of everyday life with his mother and grandmother, are discussions with Etienne's best friend Ludovic, mainly about girls and Etienne's inability to get laid because he is too shy. Slowly we (and Etienne himself) realise that maybe he's just not interested in girls, and the agony of unrequited love subtly reveals itself in filmed conversations with his 'handsome, sexy' best friend who does what any straight boy who finds his best friend giving out warning signals does - avoids the subject or runs a mile if it's brought up directly.

Although this is essentially a 'coming to terms with being gay' story (and it's far more subtle than the above description and DVD packaging would imply) the overall theme is a universal one - of teenage love and coming to terms with the pain of an unrequited first love.

The awkwardness of Etienne's intrusive filming is captured to good effect, but his natural charm and likeability ensure that all protagonists tolerate his behaviour, even when they seem far more aware of the unhealthy aspects of what he is doing than he does. While the film's charm is pretty much down to the natural performance of Tavares, he is helped by a uniformly excellent cast, who keep everything in the moment, despite the rather artifical device used to tell the story. The subject matter may sound slightly depressing but make no mistake this is an upbeat 'feel good' film, with the inevitable happy ending, and one that captures perfectly the magic of late adolescence and becoming happy with who one is and one's place in the world.

Shot on a fairly cheap Sony home movie camera, the film was never going to be a showcase DVD release. Shot in French in normal 4:3 ratio the picture obviously has no grain or speckle, but looks very much like a home movie, as intended by its makers. The English subtitles are at times overly-intrusive and can't be switched off, which is going to be very irritating if you can actually understand French.

Extra's-wise there's a very badly filmed introduction at a Lesbian and Gay Film Festival 2003 in London, where the director, writer and young lead talk very briefly and in very general terms about the film. There is also a commentary track that I didn't get around to listening to (too many other DVDs to watch and I felt the film had really spoken for itself and needed no illumination). The original screen tests for a couple of the actors are also featured, but really only prove what one has suspected all along (that one of the cast is merely being himself in front of the camera, while his depicted best friend is an actor who's learning lines and delivering a performance).

Art house films like this, even with the usual online discount, tend to be more expensive than the usual Hollywood blockbuster, and suffer by way of comparison when it comes to extra's. That being said you could do a lot worse than rent this charming, endearing film that wears its life-affirming heart on its sleeve. Recommended!

Crank (2006)

Crank is not so much a movie, as an 80 minute MTV video, with all the style and substance which that implies. If you want something thought-provoking and stimulating you've come to the wrong place. If you're happy with a fast-paced piece of nonsense that features endless effect shots, slow/fast motion cuts, loud metal music and a basic plot that is very silly indeed then Crank will be right up your street. And if I'm honest, it was right up my street too - this is a film that clearly doesn't care about awards, or presenting any kind of reality, and just wants to have fun with lots of bangs, explosions and outrageous stunts. It is, in short, a lot of fun.

Jason Statham plays Chev Chelios, a heavy for hire, who wakes up to find that he's been injected with a lethal Chinese drug that will kill him within the hour by stopping his heart. The only way to delay the effects of the poison in his system is to keep his adrenaline flowing, and the film charts his progress around Los Angeles as he does everything imaginable to keep his heartbeat high (and I DO mean everything!) whilst trying to get to the root of who did what to him and why.

This is very much an action film for the noughties, and whilst the plot gets sillier and sillier as the film moves along - with one particularly ridiculous scene featuring Chelios publicly having sex with his girlfriend whilst crowds cheer him on - it's rarely less than entertaining. Stratham plays Chelios as a kind of Grant Mitchell from East Enders, albeit one who while playing the hard man is prepared to spend a significant portion of the movie running around Los Angeles wearing a less than fetching hospital gown. The loud music, fast cutting and over-used bleach/fast-cut effects irritate initially, but once you get into the flow of the movie its general good humour, albeit peppered with a lot of violence, sexist talk and foul language, ends up winning you over, despite its political incorrectness.

The film ends with a stunning helicopter fight sequence that makes fantastic use of its Los Angeles backdrop, and goes on to deliver a final punchline that shows its makers have got their tongues firmly planted in their cheeks. Frankly, if you don't have a big grin on your face after seeing this unapologetic tosh then you must have had a sense of humour bypass.

The transfer is as good as one would expect for a film that only hit the box office a few short months ago, and there's good use of surround-sound throughout. But this is a very 'vanilla' release, with no extra's to speak of at all (unless you count trailers for other titles). Undoubtedly there will be a new version along, featuring behind-the-scenes featurettes and director's commentary in the not-too-distant future, so this is very much a rental rather than a purchase.

Snakes on a Plane (2006)

Prior to its theatrical release Snakes on a Plane received a mass of 'free' internet publicity and hype, thanks mainly to the more juvenile 'movie blog' sites getting carried away by a simple title! The rationale of these sites went like this: "It's got snakes. On a plane. That MUST be good!"

Well forgive me for having more than a couple of brain-cells, but since when has the title of a film been any kind of indication of quality of the finished result? Sometimes I think the world really has gone mad! News that reshoots were hastily planned on the back of all the internet hype, to add 'more of what the fans wanted' set the warning bells off. Gee! Samuel L Jackson shooting new scenes just so he can say 'Get these motherfuckin' snakes off my motherfuckin' plane' really reeks of a quality, well thought-out film, doesn't it?!! The lack of any pre-screenings for critics when the film was finally ready for release seemed to be sending a message loud and clear: this film is a total turkey - avoid!!!! That the film was something of a commercial failure at the box office, in spite of all the childish 'fan boy' hype based on nothing more than a vague idea, shouldn't have come as a surprise to anyone. But then sensible is a word that rarely applies to opinion printed as fact on the internet!

What WAS a surprise was the reaction from those critics who paid to go and see the film so that they could fulfill their reviewing duties. Most seemed to like the film, and watching it on DVD just three months after its theatrical 'failure' I too was surprised at how much I enjoyed it. Sure, this isn't an intellectual exercise in characterisation and plot. But it is a surprisingly consistent and fairly well polished roller-coaster ride, taking the traditions of the disaster movie, presenting them well, and wisely playing it straight instead of going the campy route that could have turned it into 90 minutes of toe-curling embarrassment.

The film starts with 'pretty boy' biker Sean Jones (Nathan Phillips) becoming an accidental witness to a brutal gangland murder, making him chief witness for the FBI, and someone in need of protection by FBI agent Neville Flynn (Samuel L. Jackson). Flying as a protected witness to the trial in Los Angeles, all hell breaks loose at 30,000 feet when some pheromone-elevated snakes are suddenly let lose to ensure that the witness and his protector never make it to the trial. Admittedly, the basic plot of 'death by snake bite' is rather ridiculous, but the film plays it for real and if you can put the silly pretext behind you the film does a good job of setting everything up for a fun 90 minutes.

The usual stock cast of disaster movie characters make an appearance. There's the badly behaved rapper who's forgotten his roots, the pompous and obnoxious British traveller, the rich heiress with her little dog (I wonder who THAT could be styled on!), the two young boys on their first flight alone, the just-married couple who are keen to join the 'Mile High' club (now I wonder if they'll survive ;-)) etc etc. but guessing who lives and who survives is not as straightforward as the clichés of the genre might imply.

The snakes themselves work well for the most part. Mainly CGI-generated, the film could have been an unconvincing mess, but thankfully there are only a couple of scenes where the snakes look somewhat unconvincing. The plot rushes along at quite a pace, although one flaw of the script is that having set up Nathan Phillips' character as one of the main characters at the start of the film he's given nothing to do once the film kicks into action with the arrival of the snakes.

Snakes on a Plane may not be high art and there's little that's original here, but what's done is done well. There are some nice subtle touches to the script (I particularly liked the 'Of course he's gay' male steward who has a nice pay-off when the plane finally lands in Los Angeles), which is surprising in a film this derivative, and the acting, characterisation and general pace of the film are all better than the 'cheap and nasty' title might lead you to expect.

For a film as recent as Snakes on a Plane, the DVD is quite generous with its extra's. There's a feature commentary from the director and producers, deleted scenes, also with optional commentary, and several short, sharp but focussed 'making of' featurettes. The trailer and music video are also included, and the high quality transfer nicely round out the package.

Snakes on a Plane is never going to win any film awards, but if you fancy a fun Saturday night in you could do a lot worse than renting or purchasing this 'B Movie' feature. It's never less than entertaining, and as such, comes recommended.

Tora! Tora! Tora! (1970)

Tora! Tora! Tora!, a docu-drama telling the story of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, was not well received in America on its original release. Most pointed the finger of failure at its attempt to be historically accurate, portraying both sides of the story fairly, resulting in a film that was too long, too dull, and too documentary-like in its approach. 'Tora-ble! Tora-ble! Tora-ble' screamed the headlines of one review, which seems extremely unfair - you only have to look at the more recent Pearl Harbor to see what happens when you Hollywood-ise a story and start inventing audience crowd-pleasers (a silly love affair in the case of the latter picture). Re-appraised over thirty years later, the apparent weakness of 'sticking to the facts' comes across as the film's greatest asset.

A lot of new information about the event that effectively forced the Americans to take part in World War II is presented in Tora! Tora! Tora!. While it's true that the film takes its time to tell its story, the final half-hour featuring the big attack, has enough explosions, smoke and flames to satiate the appetite of the most fervent action-obsessed fan boy. That the whole thing was achieved in the days before CGI was available is nothing short of miraculous.

The use of two different teams to film the Japanese and American viewpoints, works well and the film moves easily between the two different sides as the momentous events of December 7th 1941 approach. Unfortunately despite being the second most expensive film made at the time - 'it cost several times more than the original invasion on which it is based cost' quipped one Fox exec - the film was an American box office disaster, although it was saved by huge success at the Japanese box office.

I think the Japanese audience got it right, and whilst the catalogue of mistakes and the ultimate result of those mistakes may mean the end result is a bit of a downer for any Americans, it's a film that's worth watching if mistakes are not to be repeated. 'I fear we have awoken a slumbering giant', the Japanese commander is quoted saying at the end of the film, with subsequent events proving him right.

The film is lushly photographed and well executed, although the characters featured are not the main story here - it's the event itself, and the politics leading up to it, that feature most. The Japanese director performs a better job of making the main characters on the Japanese side real flesh and blood characters we can identify with, but then the American director had less to work with on that front. The largely unknown cast of 'character' actors mean that there are no distractions from investing oneself in the story, although the key word here is 'investment' and you need to choose to commit yourself to the film if you're goint to enjoy the journey it wants to take you on. This is not a film you can just dip into, or watch as background, and it demands your attention throughout. It's not a short film either, with an intermission half way through being needed for those with weak bladders or uncomfortable chairs. But if you're as weak on history as I am you'll find this a fascinating insight into how one mistake on top of another can ultimately lead to unmitigated disaster.

As with other Cinema Reserve releases, the main feature is presented in its best possible format. The tin case holds a booklet with notes on the film and two discs - one with the main feature and a commentary from a Japanese historian and the American film director, the other featuring a 90 minute 'Making of' documentary, a 25-minute TV special 'Hollywood Backstory' on the film and ten fascinating Movietone news segments made covering the events that fateful day in December 1941. There's a certain amount of repetition, but each segment has new details on the politics, particularly the problems with the originally hired Japanese director, Akira Kurosawa, who had to be 'let go' as rampant ego and paranoia took hold.

The MTV generation won't like the film much - it takes too much time to build up to its conclusion, and doesn't feature the fast-paced editing and over-the-top camera shots that modern audiences expect from blockbusters. But for the rest of us, this is a fascinating film that shows the current mess in Iraq is simply a repetition of the series of blunders that have gone before. In this excellent Cinema Reserve presentation, the DVD comes highly recommended.