How we think about films

For a long time, film has been an escape. When life gets tangled or messy or slow as it often does, film allows us to escape into someone else’s. For two hours you can forget about what you’ve got ahead and just focus on the story that is being told. A story with a beginning and an end.

And for a long time this was all that they were to me: stories. Stories that, no matter how effective they are in the moment, will fade over time. The words we are told will be largely forgotten and all that sticks with us will be how we felt when we were told them.

And so we move onto the next one. And the next. And the one after that. Constantly looking through others’ eyes and being told stories we will not fully retain. It’s only when you stop to think, I mean really think, not about what you were told or even how you felt, but what you were taught that you let a film truly impact your life.

If you only allow films to be an escape then that’s all they’ll be. Many see films as windows into others lives, but they forget that windows go both ways. While you can look through the window at what’s happening on the other side, the other side can look through to see you.

Films can teach you about anything but only if you let them. If you’re only looking for throw away stories then that’s all you’ll get. And you’ll forget. The memory of the films you love will fade because you didn’t let them teach you anything. But when you get past this, when you allow yourself, no, when you choose to be challenged and lectured from your own sofa, that’s when you’ll change.

Don’t just let films steal you away to another life, let them impact your own.

I am a Spoilerphobe (And proud)

I am a spoilerphobe.

I don’t watch trailers. I don’t read reviews. I even skip through the DVD menu for fear of it giving away a key plot point.

But do spoilers diminish the film? Going into Blade Runner 2049 I knew that Harrison Ford’s Rick Deckard returns in the long awaited sequel. It was impossible to avoid; it was on posters, buses and billboards despite the fact that he doesn’t appear in the film until over halfway through. The surprise of his appearance would’ve been incredible. Seeing the star of one of your favourite films returning 30 years later in the sequel without knowing when you went in would’ve made the film something special.

Despite this, I love Blade Runner 2049. It was a triumph. A two and three quarter hour masterpiece that will be remembered as one of the best sequels ever made.

Could it have been better?

Maybe if I hadn’t known about Deckard.

And that’s just one example.

In the trailer for Cast Away (SPOILERS COMING UP FOR CAST AWAY) they show that he makes it off the island!

In the trailer!

The ending of the film is in the marketing material.

I avoid a synopsis from friends instead gauging a genre and recommendation so I can remain constantly surprised in the cinema.

The story spoilers are only one reason I avoid everything to do with a film before seeing it. More often than not, the trailer will give away the best joke, action scene or shot that would’ve otherwise had you in awe of you’d seen it for the first time on the big screen and in context.

The promotional material takes the best parts of a film and pulls then from the context that makes them go from ‘cool’ to ‘extraordinary’.

So I implore you to plug your ears and close your eyes during trailers in order to give you the best experience possible when you finally see the moment that makes your jaw drop.

Film History Musings

Film is a relatively new form of entertainment, however, it is one of the most accessible.

Since its conception it has had people watching in droves. In 1891 Thomas Edison had his Kinetograph, the device used to capture films in that time, patented and therefore had a complete legal ownership of the film industry. Edison sued many of his competitors even going as far as to send people to smash cameras and beat up people who weren’t with his production company. This resulted in the move to California where the guerrilla film industry could make movies outside of the law. From 1891 until 1917 any film not released under Thomas Edison’s production company was illegal. Hollywood was founded on illegal filmmaking.

When I learned this, even I had to think for a moment, is illegal streaming and torrenting of movies simply the new wave of cinema? Is this just a natural progression that won’t result in the fall of cinema but instead in the rise of a new wave of the art form?

No, is the answer. You see the key difference is, the birth of Hollywood was moving the art form forward, creating new content and contributing to the industry in a large and meaningful way. Torrenting, however, does not. It merely steals what others have already created like a parasite unwilling to admit that if it destroys its host then the parasite dies too.

I digress.

From 1917 we can see the rise of Hollywood as we know it. The industrial boom. Films were more popular than ever thanks to innovations in filmmaking such as the integration of sound and technicolour in 1927 and 1939 respectively.

During the boom of Hollywood there were so many movies being made and so many people going to the cinema to watch them, that big studios could produce films that had riskier scripts that were not necessarily blockbuster material, for example ‘Citizen Kane’ and ‘Casablanca’, both of which are regarded as masterpieces made by auteurs and masters of their craft.

Today, however, the six main film studios (Warner Bros. Pictures, 20th Century Fox, Paramount Pictures, Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Walt Disney Studios) focus on only a few films and market them very heavy to try to get the most revenue from each film.

The marketing plays the biggest role in whether people see the film. Finding adverts for a movie on buses, billboards and ad breaks is only possible when the film studio dedicates a huge amount of money to marketing the film.

This has resulted in big studios not producing risky films and instead making broad, forgettable and, vitally, safe popcorn films imitating something that made them money in the past and hoping that they can hit the same chord again.

The production of the future classics is left up to the independent filmmakers. The auteurs with the scripts too off-the-wall to be picked up by any studio not willing to risk millions of dollars.

These will be the films we remember.

The significance of cinema (Are films important?)

Life is hard to explain.

It can be a challenge to know what direction you want to go in. And you know the worst thing? There’s sometimes no one to help. Sometimes you need advice that the people around you cannot give or don’t know they should be giving. In my opinion, our current education system fails to teach you about life and about yourself; there are no formal ways of learning these things. This is where films come in.

I believe that the right film at the right time can help you immensely. Sometimes with things you didn’t even know you needed help with, and can prepare you for at least some of the highs and lows of life. In 1999, ‘Fight Club’ taught us of the dangers of our own masculinity and made men all around the world examine their idols. In 2015, ‘Inside Out’ taught kids that it’s okay to be sad, and 9 years before that, ‘Little Miss Sunshine’ taught us how  important it is to be yourself. Need more convincing? In 2015, ‘Whiplash’ taught us the cost of working hard whilst in 1994, The ‘Shawshank Redemption’ showed us the rewards from hard work. ‘Juno’ in 2008 taught us more about abortion than any biased pamphlet or Facebook page. Way back in 1946 ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’ taught us the importance of friends and family in times of need and became a staple of family Christmas viewing.

Everyone is affected by the movies they watch in different ways. Some may see the original ‘Back To The Future’ as just another sci-fi adventure flick, but for me, it showed that my parents had a life before I came along. They had dreams, loves and youth that, otherwise, I would never have thought about. I believe that is what’s important here: what a film means for you. In a world where it’s so easy to get wrapped up in your own life, film gives you the vehicle to consider other lives and your own, all whilst eating popcorn on a plush leather seat.

Films can deliver messages to millions through a medium that allows its recipients to draw their own meaning from what they see. At their best, films can be a window into a part of life you haven’t come across yet or one that you may never see. In 1993, Jonathan Demme released ‘Philadelphia’ and it changed the discussion on HIV and AIDS. Marla Gold, a former assistant city health commissioner and HIV doctor said, “Philadelphia managed to do what health leaders had tried and tried to do, yet often fell short: fostering an accurate public awareness about the AIDS epidemic.”. The film gave the public a window into the life of someone with HIV by using a huge movie star (Tom Hanks) and Jonathan Demme who was hot off ‘Silence of the Lambs’ to, at least partly, remove the stigma associated with the disease. ‘Philadelphia’ allowed people to empathise both in social situations and in the courtroom. The film spread awareness on a global scale by delivering a story to millions, and giving hope to thousands, by changing the conversation and shedding light on a real life issue that many were facing at the time.

Films are important culturally too. In 2014, the Seth Rogen and James Franco comedy, ‘The Interview’, nearly caused a war by portraying the North Korean leader, Kim Jong Un, as an idiot. That, however, is an extreme example. I think the best way to analyse the cultural impact of film is to look at Steven Spielberg’s ‘Jaws’, released in the summer of 1975. The film opened in 464 cinemas across the US and was seen by millions. Needless to say, the film did not paint sharks in a good light. In fact, National Geographic commented, ‘Before Jaws, very little was known about the predators. After the film’s release, interest in sharks skyrocketed’. This ‘interest’ was not exactly positive.

The film had a direct impact on people’s behaviour. Due to the extremely negative depiction of sharks in the film people were actively hunting sharks soon after the film’s release. This rush was called ‘The Jaws effect’ and there is evidence that this has had a hand in Great White Sharks now being an endangered species. Many sources also reported that beach attendance dropped that year, most likely as a result of the killer shark. ‘Jaws’ was a phenomenon. It cemented the idea that films impact the world in very real ways.

Even if none of the points I have put forward so far were relevant, the fact remains that film is a form of art. I am not simply stating this as an opinion; film falls very clearly under the definition of art. In the first chapter of James Monaco’s  ‘How To Read A Film’, he breaks down what art is via the current definition that now includes both representational media and recorded media. He says: ‘[Today there is] a spectrum of the arts that looks like this:

• the performance arts, which happen in real time;

• the representational arts, which depend on the established codes and conventions of language (both pictorial and literary) to convey information about the subject to the observer;

• the recording arts, which provide a more direct path between subject and observer: media not without their own codes but qualitatively more direct than the media of the representational arts.’

The medium of film easily fits into this spectrum. In my opinion, art should be preserved as a representation of culture and as an interpretive medium on equal standing with that of other more established forms of art.

Therefore, the decline of cinema should be seen in the same way as if there was a major threat to any other form of art culture. However, with film being a relatively modern medium, established in the last 100 years (and even more recently in the form that we see today), many dismiss it as inferior. I would strongly disagree as I believe film as art can evoke emotion in a way that no other form of art can. I believe that this alone is enough reason to try our hardest to preserve film.

Master Of None: Writing Real Romance

Romance has always been a part of movies and TV.

Ross and Rachael.

Ted and Robin.

Jack and Rose.

These names instantly bring an image to your head, maybe of grand romantic gestures or ballads being blasted from your television speakers.

This is movie romance.

This is the kind of romance that you’ve seen a thousand times where they meet and fall in love and live happily ever after.

This isn’t real romance.

This isn’t the kind of romance that makes your chest ache with longing or your heart flutter whenever you think of it.

To me, Master Of None is the first TV series to ever give me that feeling. The feeling of longing for what the characters on screen have. The feeling I get when I watch 500 Days Of Summer or Her. The feeling of well written, well observed, real romance.

Here, Aziz Ansari has constructed characters that transcend their world in a way that very few writers can do. Characters that aren’t really characters but instead come across as people you could bump into on the streets of New York City.

Arnold and Dev’s friendship will remain one of the most genuine in television history and the romantic interests have incredible depth and nuance when alongside Dev. The women aren’t portrayed as goals or items on a checklist but as people with their own dreams and desires that have nothing to do with the male lead.

It’s these characters and their interactions that give the show such a punch.

And believe me, Aziz does not hold back. There are parts in both seasons one and two that really hit you in a way that “movie romance” cannot. I think the fact that Aziz is so aware of the tropes and cliches of the genre allows him to create this feeling without being overly sentimental or letting go of the heart of the show which is the characters.

When watching Master Of None (especially season 2) you can really see Aziz’s love for cinema. His style of writing and directing show off his infatuation for the artform that I also hold very dear. Wide shots that show off the landscape of his beloved New York elicit Baumbach’s best work and perfectly encapsulates the sense of constant awe the characters are in in terms of their immediate environment. The stunning Modena allows Ansari to put his love of classic European cinema to the forefront; especially in season two’s first episode where he homages such Italian classics as The Bicycle Thieves to great effect. The editing and shot composition recreating that iconic cinematic era flawlessly.

However, I think his love for film is most apparent in his writing. Aziz captures the weight of longing that is often neglected by lesser writers. The ache of love is rarely felt, especially in film but Aziz pulls it off. Rom-com writers take note, you have a new master.

Master Of None is brilliant and streaming on Netflix now.

Welcome

Find me on twitter @SteffHMovies or feel free to email me at steff.hmovies@gmail.com.

I do take requests so if there’s a specific film you want me to talk about leave in the comments or email it to me.

Sidestreet Cinema

I personally save every single cinema ticket and put them in a jar on my desk to remind me that film has been and always will be a part of my life. So it tears me apart when people illegally stream, pirate and torrent the films that I, and many like me, hold dear.

According to an article by Culture Weekly, the fiercely original Swiss Army Man was the most torrented movie of 2016 with over 7 million torrents. On Twitter, the director of the film Daniel Kwan goes on to say that without the torrenting of his movie, he had potential to double sales. This is just one of many examples. 
In my eyes, the world has reached a point where morals have been replaced by laziness and empathy has been replaced by narcissism. The beautiful thing about films, and the reason I watch them, is because of their ability to transport you into the life of another like no other art form. Their ability to allow you to empathise with the characters you see on screen. Then why is it that we cannot show the same amount of empathy, or any at all, for those responsible for giving us those feelings. The filmmakers behind the films that we love are being damaged by our inability to exercise any level of morality in regards to their art. No, it’s not the faceless studios you’re rebelliously screwing over, you’re not some modern day Robin Hood. No, it’s the people behind the camera that won’t get their next project green lit because people are too lazy to spend as little as £4.00 to go and see their film.

Being the age that I am, I hear the same excuses all the time; “I’m only one person what difference will I make?”. We are all ‘just one person’ and yet we still all impact the world. How many single grains of sand does it take to make a handful? 7 million enough for you? How ignorant must you be to think that you have no impact on the world around you.

What would’ve happened if everyone torrented Reservoir Dogs? 
Or Memento?

Clerks?

How about Eraserhead?

Would the world of film be the same as it is today if these films never got the support that they did?

And the shit-smeared cherry on top is that almost no one seems to talk about it. It seems like no one cares. Like no one realises that if this goes on it would cause irreparable damage to the art form that has united millions for over a century. So I implore you, please talk about it, talk to the people who do this, ask them why. Interrogate them. Try to make them realise that they are harming people. They Rae making an impact. Hell, just tell them to try the cinema. Get them to realise not only is it good to support the people behind the films but also that going to your local multiplex is an experience that simply cannot be matched by squinting at your phone just to read to opening crawl.

Uncle – SteffHMovies Review

(Before I get into this, trust me and watch Uncle. If you live in the U.K. then you have no excuse, all 19 episodes are on BBC iPlayer. Get on that!)

Uncle is special. It is very rare that I get as attached to the characters in a tv show as I did with Uncle. There is normally one or two characters that I’m supposed to like but just can’t bring myself to do so. However, with Uncle it’s different. Nobody’s perfect, far from it, but that’s what makes them real. Andy is an unemployed alcoholic, Sam is a single mum who has struggled with alcohol abuse and Errol is autistic. Without these quirks they wouldn’t seem human. This is a huge credit to the writers for making characters who could actually exist in our world while still making them as likeable as they are.

Human drama is something that many sitcoms lack or try despite often falling short. But by the end of the first series it was apparent that this was not one of those shows. It wasn’t afraid to take risks. And that continued throughout the second series and into the third, through to an emotionally driven finale. All whilst still finding to time to make us laugh.

But I think the reason Uncle is special is because it does so much, so well whilst still remaining so understated. It’s a comedy, drama, satire while still having incredible music interwoven throughout.

Think broken British Conchords.

And despite everything I’ve said, it still remains way too under appreciated. For all the hard work that the writers put into it, and Nick Helm writing his own songs for the series, no one seems to talk about it. However, everyone who has seen it knows how special it is.

Uncle has been in my life for a mere three series but I’m unlikely to ever forget it.

The One I Love – SteffHMovies Review

The One I Love is a rom-com with a twist. The twist comes very near the beginning of the film but going in blind will leave you much more satisfied. Don’t look up anything about this film, not even its genre!

The One I Love follows Sophie (Elisabeth Moss) and Ethan (Mark Duplass) as they go to a romantic retreat recommended by their relationship therapist. And I shall say no more about the plot.

This is director Charlie McDowell’s first film (his second debuting on Netflix March 31st, The Discovery) and by going for a simple concept he was able to execute it with ease. The writing is smart as well, although sometimes a little too smart presenting hugely interesting ideas without following up. However, this only happens a few times in the movie with the rest of the script being tight.

Both of the leads are brilliant and being pretty much the only people in the film (save the therapist), they have time and room to develop their characters fully. We know Elisabeth Moss is great (check out Top Of The Lake if you haven’t already, it’s on Netflix) but Mark Duplass shows once again that he is more than a sitcom actor and can really hold his weight in what is essentially a two person performance.

The cinematography is very interesting with off-set shots adding to the unease. The score is simple yet very effective also.

Overall I would say The One I Love is a simple yet satisfying film I would highly recommend and with it being on Netflix UK (don’t know about others sorry) you have no excuse!

I’ll give The One I Love an: 8 out of 10.

The Girl With All The Gifts – SteffHMovies Review

The Girl With All The Gifts is a zombie-ish film directed by Colm McCarthy (previously directed Series 2 of Peaky Blinders – which I highly recommend), starring Sennia Nanua, Gemma Arterton, Glenn Close and Paddy Considine and based off the novel of the same name, written by M . R Carey.

A group of infected children have developed free-will and are being brought up on an army base when one of them must go on the run…

The Girl With All The Gifts is one of the best zombie films I have seen in years. This is not your typical action-zombie film, it does have its chases and snapping jaws but it is a thinker above all of that. It poses a question asks you as the audience to answer it and the ending does the same. This means that The Girl With All The Gifts is a divisive movie and not everyone will like the ending. However, I believe that if you appreciate film and what was done in this film then you will se that it is fantastic.

Firstly, the acting. We all expected Glenn Close and Paddy Considine to be great and this is them at their best, but the girl in this movie, Sennia Nanua, is brilliant, a break-out star for sure. Her relationships between Gemma Arterton, Paddy Considine and especially Glenn Close are all very different and all equally great. Glen Close and Sennia Nanua share an incredible scene near the middle, in a hospital which is some of the best dialogue this year.

The thing I loved most about this movie, however, is how it jumped form one nerve-jangling set piece to the next, each as memorable as the last and to pick a stand out scene is almost impossible. The pacing of this film is spot on, fluidly going from intense set piece to brief moments of solitude without feeling jarring. One of the set pieces (or strings of) in particular was phenomenal. I won’t spoil anything but just watch out for the Lord of the Flies esque scene!

Another thing I loved about this film is how lonely the world felt with the streets overgrown and degrading and vast silence waiting to be cut through by the cries of a ‘Hungry’. The tensions within the group were developed so well that you hang on every word and action.

The character of Melanie (Sennia Nanua) has one of the most compelling story arcs I’ve seen this year culminating in a finale that allows her to rise above what is expected of a lead like her. Also her ability to walk the line between vulnerable and terrifying was testament to the direction, source material and how Sennia Nanua portrayed the character.

The film is also gorgeously shot with soft focus for the personal moments and sweeping wide shots to show the vast English wasteland. The CGI in the film is used as a tool only filling in backgrounds when the film cannot do these practically. The makeup covers most of the heavy lifting in the film and each zombie is done brilliantly.

My only criticism is that one character in the group felt a little under-developed and only to serve a single purpose in a certain sequence. If he was fleshed out a bit more then I would be hard pressed to find a single flaw in this film.

Now, this film is not for everyone. With its share of gore (although not excessive) and its philosophical questions and ballsy ending it will turn many viewers off. However, I was totally captivated by The Girl With All The Gifts and if its showing near you I highly recommend seeing it. I will give The Girl With All The Gifts a: 9 out of 10.