20,000 Days On Earth - review

This is not your typical rockumentary. This is more like "a day in the life of a rock star" but specifically the 20,000th day in the life of Nick Cave.

Prior to viewing this film, my knowledge of Nick Cave amounted to a) He is Australian b) he lives in Brighton c) wrote the screenplay and score for The Proposition and d) duetted with Kylie Minogue (a fact that Cave admits brought him a lot of new attention that was short lived when people heard the rest of his stuff).

However you can go into 20,000 Days On Earth with zero knowledge or a PHD in Caveology and there is still so much to admire and enjoy as it paints a lyrical and poetic portrait of a musical icon and the man behind it.

It exposes his songwriting and recording process with a performance of "Higgs-Boson Blues" and also lays bare his soul in a series of confessionals with his psychiatrist, band member Warren Ellis, archivists plus Locke-style conversations with the "are-they or aren't they there" Kylie and the floating head of Ray Winstone.

This brief but brilliant glimpse into Nick Cave's mind culminates in an incredible performance of Jubilee Street at the Sydney Opera House which cuts together 20,000 days of performing into one show-stopping number.

Whether a lifelong fan or casual newcomer, 20,000 Days On Earth will plant the (bad) seed that will see Cave's music play a role in another 20,000 days for many people in the future.

5 stars

Noah - review

"It is as it was". Words the Pope used to describe The Passion Of The Christ and words that are unlikely to be used when talking about Darren Aronofsky's $125 million epic which plays less like the Sunday School story and more like a dystopian end-of-the-world big-budget episode of Doctor Who featuring rock monsters and a cockney villain.

Yes, you read that correctly. In this version of the story, Noah can be compared to The Doctor.

The character of The Doctor is often described as "a mad man in a box" and that is precisely what Noah can be described as in the second part of the story.

With the help of aliens from another world who are covered in rock, he constructs his massive box filled with at least two of every type of creature on the planet thus being seemingly bigger on the inside than on the outside, and proceeds to become increasingly unhinged as he is forced to make decisions that will affect the course of history.

He is told that the flood cannot be averted, hence it is one of those "fixed points in time" that Steven Moffat is so fond of in his tenure as show runner. This results in some tough choices which include leaving companions to die and contemplating infanticide when he believes that the race of men must be allowed to die.

There can be arguments made that the film is set in biblical times but also that it is a story set in a dystopian future where man has ravaged the earth with violence, war and destroyed its environment and the impending demise by water is not the wrath of God but the result of global warming.

God doesn't actually get mentioned at all in the film, rather it is "The Creator" but Aronofsky basically sticks two fingers up to Creationists with Noah's recital of the story of creation being set to a time lapse video montage of evolution!

Also because the end of the world at the hands of the creator is simply not enough, you need a human enemy to add that extra level of fear and hatred and so Ray Winstone and some extras from Game Of Thrones turn up to become the Raiders Of The First Ark.

And speaking of arks, Russell Crowe does an excellent job with his character's arc from protective family man to saviour to madman and anchors the film with a great performance.

It might be one of the most bonkers mainstream movies ever made but it features some stunning cinematography, an excellent score by Clint Mansell and is a thrilling, epic adventure that should have audiences going into the cinemas two by two if this kind of thing floats their boat.

3 stars

Starred Up - review

During the opening scenes of Starred Up, it felt like Jack O'Connell's Eric Love had clearly watched other British prison movies like Scum and Bronson before being incarcerated because within five minutes of being locked in his cell he has made himself a makeshift knife (or Shiv) and unpacked his baby oil to grease himself up when fighting the guards and screaming "Come on you F*CKING C*NTS!!!"

But there is no point in Eric shouting "I'm the daddy now" in this prison because that role is taken by his actual father Neville (Ben Mendelsohn) who could prove to be both a help and a hindrance.

Mendelsohn is a complete chameleon as an actor, as there are times I don't even realise that it is him until halfway through a film (listing The Dark Knight Rises, Killing Them Softly and The Place Beyond The Pines as example).

Both Mendelsohn and O'Connell are both fantastic as the father/son dynamic continually shifts and evolves in a film that is filled with so much testosterone and tension, you are on the edge of your seat with a feeling of anxiety and dread because tempers could flare and violence erupt at any moment.

This is no Frank Darabont movie. There is no redemption for Shawshank, Love or anyone else here. Only terrific performances and an interesting take on the reunited father/son dynamic. Consider it "The Green Street Mile".

4 stars