The Dunnie Awards 2013 - And The Winners Are...

Happy New Year!  I hope you all had a fantastic end of December, however you celebrated it!

It's the last day of 2013 and to celebrate, I have the golden envelope containing the winners of the Mike Dunn Reviews' First Ever Dunnie Awards!  I can tell you're all very excited to discover the victors, ever since I announced the nominees a few days ago, so I'll get right to it!

First, the winner of Best Screenplay.

Now I could have given the award to any of these films; they all contain witty and intriguing dialogue, fresh and exciting characters, plus more twists and turns than a break-dancing competition at M. Night Shyamalan's house.  However, one screenplay definitely stood out from the rest...

THE WORLD'S END differed greatly from writer/director Edgar Wright and writer/star Simon Pegg's previously instalments in the Cornetto trilogy, Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, by having a truly damaged character as their main protagonist. 

This could also be said of James McAvoy's Bruce in Filth, but whereas Bruce is nihilistic and sociopathic, Pegg's Gary King is a likeable yet annoying, washed-up deadbeat, who is simply looking for a way to relive the glory days of his youth, even at the expense of the friendship he shares with his nearest and dearest.  King's relationship with ex-best friend Andy (Nick Frost), his old flame Sam (Rosamund Pike) and the town of Newton Haven as a whole has become self-destructive and rose-tinted, with his obsession with completing the Golden Mile taking all priority.

The deterioration of his character and outlook is only complimented by the destruction of the town around the returning school-friends, as both of their attempts at the Golden Mile follow similar paths and feature hidden harbingers of the plot to follow.  The dialogue is as slick as the cinematography, the balance is sublime and there will always be something new that you notice every time you watch The World's End and that is a true sign of an intricate and carefully-planned screenplay.

Next, to present the award for Best Actress...

I tried to be a little diverse with this category, highlighting actresses who work so effortlessly, their performances might have gone overlooked, such as the increasingly-impressive Andrea Riseborough and Rooney Mara, or those who may have acted incredibly well but were overshadowed by the restrictions of the film genre in which they were starring, such as Jane Levy, who was spectacular in the remake of The Evil Dead but won't be taken seriously due to it's overblown and violent content.


However, this year I cannot give the award to anyone but ...

JUDI DENCH for her performance as the titular Irish mother searching for her long-lost son in Philomena.  Her incredibly subtle and gentle portrayal of the real-life Philomena Lee could have achieved the award simply due to her reminding me of my own Nan and the film influenced me to put my emotions above my logic, but screw it, I adored the character of Philomena.  

Her kind-hearted and almost naive nature is so evident all the way through the film that you can't help but empathise with her and that is completely down to Dench's nuance and warmth.  The true story of how Philomena was treated at the Irish convent is appalling but how she was able to forgive her tormentors is truly amazing, and her explanation is handled terrifically well by Dame Judi.  The portrayal never falls into mimicry or caricature, as Dench keeps the character grounded and realistic.  But what else is expected of this very accomplished actress?  Never count out The Dench.

Moving on now from Best Actress, we have the winner of the Best Actor award...

Earlier this year, I wrote an article about how JAMES MCAVOY is by far one of my favourite actors of this current generation.  His performances in both Filth and Trance have propelled him to the heights of fame, as well as the lofty heights of The Dunnie Award winner's ceremony.  In both these films, McAvoy provides such a range of acting abilities, I was completely bowled over by what this young man from Port Glasgow showed.

Whilst Bruhl and Cumberbatch showed intensity, Pegg showed humour and pathos and Hanks showed natural acting ability, I feel McAvoy showed all of these this year in his two leading performances. 

His natural charisma and charm simply ooze off the screen in both films as he portrays unreliable narrators and provides steady groundwork for both stories to build.  Whilst the audience might not trust his character, you feel comfortable in his ability to entertain, even when acting despicably or dishonestly and that is a rare trait for a leading actor today.  His charm and talent transfix the eye to the screen, despite the vulgarity or confusing actions that he is doing.  With his vast range and inherent likability, Mr. McAvoy is definitely going to win an Academy Award soon, you mark my words!

Now, back to the technical awards, with the award for Best Director...

This has been one of the most difficult decisions to make in the deliberation of The Dunnie Awards.  Whilst Greengrass and Cuaron deserve their nominations due to outstanding direction in both Captain Phillips and Gravity respectively, I feel like I should champion someone who will not get the attention they deserve due to factors such as obscurity, surreal or outlandish topics or just the fact that Gravity and Captain Phillips have been grabbing all the headlines this year and overshadowing the other great feats of direction.

With that in mind, ever since watching Stoker back in March, I have been haunted by the incredible cinematography, beautiful score, impressive performances, terrifying set pieces and was left literally speechless at the end, convinced that I had just witnessed a moving work of art, even if it was one that I didn't fully understand.  I feel that this is fully attributable to the director CHAN-WOOK PARK.

Chan-Wook is a South Korean director, most famous for his 'Vengeance' film trilogy, that includes Sympathy For Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy and Sympathy for Lady Vengeance.  Stoker is his first English-language film and he certainly was able to apply all that he had learnt in Korea to his first American production.

I should wait before announcing the award for Best Film, but since we're already discussing it, I might as well combine the two awards...

STOKER is by far, my favourite film of the year and the winner of this year's Dunnie Award For Best Film.  Very similar to how I felt about Scott Pilgrim vs. The World a few years ago, when someone asks me why, it usually takes me a while to explain.

As I mentioned earlier, I was left speechless as Stoker's credits began to roll across the screen.  Every scene was intricately designed and beautifully constructed, the performances are so subtle and effortless and yet powerful and precise.  I quite openly consider the film on a whole is a masterpiece and a welcome addition to Chan-Wook's already-stellar backlog, even though I know it will not be to everyone's taste.

The storyline is macabre and sometimes morbid, but also sensual and fantastic.  I watched it with my fellow cinema critic and we had two completely different experiences whilst watching it.  I saw a certain vampiric element in the background of the film whereas he saw a simple, but chilling, family thriller, but we were equally bowled over it.

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And that is that for 2013!  Thank you for joining me in celebrating the year that was!  Roll on 2014 and all the cinematic treats that lay before us and I will see you at the second annual Dunnie Awards next year!

If you enjoyed what you read and you'd like to be kept more up to date with my posts, I can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mike-Dunn-Reviews and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MikeDunnReviews - if you want to help the site grow, give them a 'Like' or a 'Share'!

The Dunnie Awards 2013 - The Nominees

It's coming to that time of year again...

...and here at Mike Dunn Reviews, I will present the first annual Dunnie Awards for the greatest accomplishments in cinema for the past year.  I will announce the results next week but for now, here are the nominees!

First we have the award for Best Screenplay!

The nominees are...

Django Unchained - Writer: Quentin Tarantino

Filth - Writer: Jon S. Baird

Philomena - Writers: Steve Coogan & Jeff Pope

Stoker - Writers: Wentworth Miller & Erin Cressida Wilson

The World's End - Writers: Simon Pegg & Edgar Wright

Now the award for Best Director!

The nominees are...

Danny Boyle - Trance

Alfonso Cuaron - Gravity

Paul Greengrass - Captain Phillips

Chan-Wook Park - Stoker

Edgar Wright - The World's End

Now the award for Best Actress!

The nominees are...

Sandra Bullock - Gravity

Judi Dench - Philomena

Jane Levy - Evil Dead

Rooney Mara - Side Effects

Andrea Riseborough - Oblivion / Welcome To The Punch

Now the award for Best Actor!

The nominees are...

Daniel Bruhl - Rush

Benedict Cumberbatch - Star Trek: Into Darkness

Tom Hanks - Captain Phillips

James McAvoy - Filth / Trance

Simon Pegg - The World's End

Now the award for Best Film!

The ten nominees (and my favourite ten films of the year) are...

Captain Phillips - dir. Paul Greengrass

Gravity - dir. Alfonso Cuaron

Mae Maxima Culpa - Silence In The House Of God - dir. Alex Gibney

Philomena - dir. Stephen Frears

Rush - dir. Ron Howard

Star Trek Into Darkness - dir. J. J. Abrams

Stoker - dir. Chan-Wook Park

Trance - dir. Danny Boyle

The World's End - dir. Edgar Wright

Wreck-It Ralph - dir. Rich Moore

So there we are, all the nominees have been announced and it won't be until next week that we find out the winners!  Oh I just cannot wait!  

Check back next week to see who will be announced the Best Screenplay, Director, Actor, Actress and Film Of The Year!

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Top Five Friday: Successful Foreign-Language Remakes

Later on tonight, I am going to visit my local cinema to watch the just-released Oldboy, directed by the American director Spike Lee.  The original Oldboy, a South Korean film directed by Park Chan-wook back in 2003, is one of my personal favourites and I am quite nervous about how the American studios have treated this story of betrayal, kidnap and revenge.  However, to calm my nerves, I've decided to list my Top Five foreign-language remakes; either to keep my hopes high, or to retrospectively remind myself that the transition can be successful when treated properly.

So let's begin, shall we?!

5.  The Ring

Back in 2002, Gore Verbinski's remake of the Japanese film Ringu was released and it managed to frighten a whole new section of the world, who would usually avoid a film with subtitles, such as 14-year old me.  I often would argue that "I don't want to read a film, I'm there to watch it!" and I still hear this argument to this day.  However, this film was my first taste of Japanese horror and films that are inspired by them.

I was simply petrified by this film.  The atmospheric music and sparse imagery embodied the film with an intensely creepy sensation and many set-pieces certainly stuck with me.  The image of "the Ring Girl", Samara, in a bright white dress and sitting in the middle of a pure white room with the only thing black being the thick hair covering her face is simply iconic today, and this is the film that really started it all.  Remakes of Japanese originals such as The Grudge, Dark Water, The Eye and Shutter all followed on from The Ring and since most of been critical failures, many film critics argue that it should have stayed in Japan.

4. Funny Games

I rented the original Funny Games back in 2005 as I was trying to broaden my horizons with European cinema whilst studying film in college.  I had heard it was an intense watch but definitely worth it and I was not disappointed.  Funny Games concerns a small German family who are terrorised by two local teenagers, making them play sadistic and pain-filled games just because they can.  It was incredibly brutal and terrifying, using very subtle and subversive methods including breaking 'the fourth wall', all of which have become synonymous with the director Michael Haneke.

Two years later, I learnt that Haneke was remaking his own film, but this time in the English-language.  This perplexed me, as remakes are usually handled by a different director, allowing the chance for a new interpretation of the same material, so I approached the American remake with some trepidation.  However, the film was pretty much the exact same, with some sequences even shot-for-shot similar, but just with Naomi Watts and Tim Roth instead of their German originals.  The same menace and sadistic streak ran throughout the film and it was still an uncomfortable film to watch.  In a good way, of course.

3. Let Me In

The Swedish Let The Right One In was released back in 2008 and centred on a young frail boy who is often the victim of  the local school bullies.  He soon develops a friendship with a vampire child, Eli, who lives in the same apartment block and he learns the courage to stand up for himself. The entire film treads a fine line between heartfelt drama about childhood friendship and the horror of a vampiric life, especially when you appear to be a child.

Most fans of the film opposed the very idea of remaking of the Swedish original, but upon watching Matt Reeves' re-imagining, I honestly didn't mind it.  I even preferred some sections to the original.  The choice of the ever-impressive Chloe Grace Moretz and rising star Kodi Smit-McPhee as the main two leads really added depth to their friendship and special bond.  The increased budget also allowed the director to utilise special effects to show off Abby/Eli's vampire abilities, such as climbing buildings with ease and impressive amounts of strength.  Despite how well the transition may be, the film's focus switches depending on the country of origin; Let The Right One In is a story about childhood friendship, and it happens to feature vampires.  Let Me In is a story about vampires, who happen to share a childhood friendship.  I find the former a much more interesting narrative.

2. The Departed

This Academy Award-winning crime-thriller from 2006 was adapted from the originally titled Infernal Affairs, made in Hong Kong back in 2002.  Infernal Affairs was considered a 'box-office miracle' when first released and seen as an indication of a resurgence in Hong Kong cinema, remaining the highest-rated Hong Kong film on the list of IMDb's Top 250 Films Of All Time.  I wasn't aware of the original film when seeing The Departed in the cinema, but I was blown away by the storyline and the performances by stalwart actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson, and even Mark Wahlberg steals the show!

The film surrounds the Boston police department and the local Mob, ran by boss Jack Nicholson.  To infiltrate the police, he persuades his protege, Matt Damon, to join the police department to keeps tabs on their Mob investigations.  Little does he know that the police are doing the same thing to him.  Leonardo DiCaprio is an undercover policeman monitoring the crime boss and begins to rise through the ranks in his organisation, despite it taking a toll on Leo's mental state.

Infernal Affairs was noteworthy due to the intricate story of loyalty and betrayal, as well as being beautifully shot.  Scorcese successfully manages to translate every slight nuance and every tense stand-off into an outstanding Hollywood thriller that rightfully earned him his first Best Director Academy Award.

Now whilst this is a fantastic film and an incredible adaptation, there is still a film adaptation that impresses me more...

1. Twelve Monkeys

However, the top spot has to be given to a film that I didn't even know what an adaptation of a foreign film, let alone a French short film.  The French short in question was a 28-minute black-and-white film called La Jetée, made in 1962 and constructed simply of still photographs.  The short featurette's plot consists of a prisoner in the aftermath of a Third World War who becomes the subject of time-travel experimentation in an attempt to discover secrets of the past.  Change the event of a Third World War to a virus outbreak, and this plot is obviously Terry Gilliam's 1995 sci-fi Twelve Monkeys, so much so, the film even honours La Jetée in it's opening credits.

The film has been praised as one of the greatest science fiction films of all time, and I can't help but agree.  I would attribute this to Gilliam's surreal direction, the cinematography of Roger Pratt, the powerful and mesmerising performances of Bruce Willis and the Oscar-nominated Brad Pitt and the plot twists sprinkled through the film.  It is a wholly melancholic film and I love watching it again and again.  It has become a cult hit within certain film circles and rightfully so.

If you have yet to see this twisted and impressive time traveller, I highly recommend it.

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Thank you for reading guys and girls, I hope you enjoyed my list.  If I missed out any entries, please feel free to comment in the section below!

If you enjoyed what you read, I can be found on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mike-Dunn-Reviews and on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MikeDunnReviews - give them a 'Like' or a 'Share'!

Succinct Sunday - Welcome To The Punch

London Calling

Mark Strong and James McAvoy are in everything nowadays and whilst McAvoy is getting more notoriety, especially in award catergories, Strong is simply becoming known as "That Guy From That Thing".  The London-born actor has appeared in a broad range of films, ranging from the controversial Gulf War film Zero Dark Thirty to the Disney flop John Carter (of Mars) and I believe is one of the most reliable actors today.  Putting him together with James McAvoy is sure to guarantee a sure-fire hit, right?

Welcome To The Punch centres around London detective Max Lewinsky (McAvoy) who is becoming obsessed with capturing the notorious criminal Jacob Sternwood (Strong). During their game of cat-and-mouse, both detective and criminal become unlikely allies and work together to expose a deeper conspiracy in the London police force.

Shiny, shiny London!

First off, never have I seen London look so beautiful.  The cinematographer Ed Wild and director Eran Creevy have really made the capital pop and sparkle.  Secondly, both McAvoy and Strong's potent chemistry is evident from their first encounter.  Their clear antagonism drives the story forward with incredible pace and they both give terrific performances, which can also be said of the supporting Andrea Riseborough and David Morrissey.

God, the remaining members of Boyzone look rough!

However, the film never really provides the audience with anything new or interesting. Every scene could have taken from a previously-released crime film, with predictable twists and turns every step of the way.  The only exception would be a very tense scene of evening tea with an old woman and a pug, and I know that sounds unlikely, but it did have me on the edge of my seat.  However, I needed more examples of that.  It is a semi-strong entry into both McAvoy and Strong's portfolio, but not one that they will be remembered for.

Rating - 6/10

Two For Tuesday: Rush / Thor: The Dark World

THORMULA ONE

For Odin's sake!
Do you even OWN a shirt?

Women of the world; rejoice! As today’s Two For Tuesday focuses on two recent films starring the relatively new Australian actor, Chris Hemsworth.  Both he and his younger brother Liam have been recently setting America alight with their powerful leading-man performances, quite public break-ups, but most importantly, their chiselled pectorals and jawlines.  Whilst Liam has starred in some mediocre films such as The Hunger Games, and as well as being known as Miley Cyrus’ other half, Chris has shot to higher notoriety. Through his starring roles in films such as Cabin in the Woods, Snow White and the Huntsman and The Avengers, the older Hemsworth has become somewhat of a household name, especially in mine, as my girlfriend insists on hanging the Chris Hemsworth calendar up in our flat.

But recently, Chris has appeared in two box-office smashes, Rush, the semi-biopic of Formula One drivers James Hunt and Niki Lauda, and the Marvel Universe sequel Thor: The Dark World.  Both feature high-adrenaline set pieces, emotional turmoil for our heroes, and ultimately, hunky Chris being out-acted by a more accomplished actor.  But we’ll get to that in a bit.

Released back in August, Rush follows the paths of two Formula One drivers, the British playboy James Hunt and the level-headed and meticulous Austrian, Niki Lauda.

It was the blondest of weddings

Whilst these two drivers are complete opposites off the track, when they race, they both strive for victory no matter the risk to their own lives.  The film shows us both racers rise from the lower levels of Formula 3 all the way to the big leagues of F1 Grand Prix racing as well as their different methods, lifestyles and approaches to the sport. Whilst Hunt drinks away his days with a different girl every night, Lauda spends his time analysing his vehicle, trying to find better ways of improving his performance. This difference in lifestyles fuels a rivalry that lasts over many Grand Prix courses and both men must live with the horrendous consequences of their choices.

Much like Apollo 13, Frost/Nixon and A Beautiful Mind before it, Ron Howard has managed to take this true story and utilise the possibilities of a big screen adaptation to it's full potential.  The entire idea behind Hunt and Lauda's rivalry is that this pissing-contest took place at speeds of over 150mph.  That is simultaneously an incredibly impressive and stupidly dangerous way to make a living.  It's no wonder that Hunt is always shown numbing the impending danger with alcohol and Lauda is a nervous wreck that has no time to enjoy his life when they choose such a life-threatening profession.  Consequently, the film is just a thrill-ride from beginning to end.  This is mainly due to Howard's incredible direction, Anthony Mantle's kinetic and invasive cinematography as well as the haunting score of Hans Zimmer's, which is often unfortunately drowned out by the revving of engines.

Hemsworth offers a decent performance as the carefree rogue James Hunt, worryingly almost coming to the point of a caricature, but the native Australian displays enough gravitas and gives such an earnest portrayal that it is able to ground him and make him seem three-dimensional.

However, the plaudits all go to the German actor Daniel Brühl who portrays Niki “The Rat” Lauda. Brühl will be known to most from Tarantino's WWII epic Inglorious Basterds but he has most recently been starring opposite Benedict Cumberbatch in The Fifth Estate, and is hopefully going to be nominated at this Academy Awards for his performance in Rush.  Brühl physically transforms himself into this highly-strung, fastidious perfectionist with seemingly effortless ease and is a perfect foil to the happy-go-lucky Hunt.  Their partnership and rivalry really moves the film along at an appropriately brisk pace, and their showdown races at the German and Japanese Grands Prix are just mesmerising. (Bet you didn't know that was the plural of 'Grand Prix' did ya?)

Even if you hated the film, you have to applaud the casting

From the racetracks of Germany and Japan, comes the realms of Nibelheim and Asgard, where most of Thor: The Dark World takes place. Again, Chris Hemsworth plays the dashing and lovable rogue character, the titular God of Thunder and two years have passed since the events of the first Thor film and the superhero collaboration/cash-cow The Avengers. The Asgardian prince has been charged with bringing peace to the Nine Realms, whilst his love interest Jane (Natalie Portman) has been searching for more scientific clues to the other realms, as well as Thor's return.  However, an ancient evil is awoken, and with it comes the return of the Dark Elves, who's main goal is to extinguish all light in the Universe. And Thor can't be having that.

Nice mask...That's cool...
I wasn't planning on sleeping tonight anyway...

I was really taken with the first Thor; it didn't try and be cool and cocky like it's brother-film Iron Man, or dark and brooding like The Incredible Hulk. It knew it was camp and it didn't try and hide it. It wore it's twiddled moustaches and gigantic magical hammers on it's sleeve and I admired that. Also it had a fantastic dastardly villain in Thor's mischievous brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston) who sometimes provides a larger impression on the film than the main hero.

Hemsworth seems such perfect casting for the God of Thunder. With his long-flowing locks, chiseled features and elegant Aussie-turned-British accent, it's no wonder that it's not just guys who were queueing up to watch the worldwide midnight screenings! Tom Hiddleston's Loki seems to also be attracting his own share of followers recently. His natural charisma is so intoxicating and you can't but smile every time he wryly criticises his adoptive brother driving skills and their inevitable bickering when in the cockpit of an alien spacecraft.  His inclusion in this film manages to bring every aspect together and he is such a valuable asset to the film.

Don't worry guys,
we get some eye-candy too...

There are few new characters that didn't star in the previous film, with familiar faces like Darcy (Kat Dennings) and Heimdal (Idris Elba) reprising their roles, however former Doctor Who Christopher Eccleston stars as the villain, the Dark Elf, Malekith The Accursed (or just Malekith to his pals).  Now I'm usually a fan of Ecclestons, having being blown away by him in both Danny Boyle films Shallow Grave and 28 Days Later, but I feel like his acting capabilities are hindered by the extensive make-up he finds himself under and the fact that he hardly speaks English, preferring the Elvish language that is dutifully subtitled. Along with the lack of understanding, there was a certain lack of malice from his character.  Yes, he wants to bring the Universe back to pure darkness, but it is never mentioned why or how he intends to create this mischief.  It just leaves the story without a memorable or imposing villain and that is a true shame.

However like I previously mentioned, hardly anything has changed from the first Thor film.  Enough of the gripping tension and visually stunning fight scenes are interspersed with very funny comedic moments, such as Thor taking a trip of the London Underground, so it keeps an even balance throughout.  The film is hardly a game-changer, but an incredibly fun watch.  And even if the Norse mythology bores you, Thor gets his shirt off a few times.  I knew that'd win you over.

Rush - 8.5/10

Thor: The Dark World - 8/10

And just to finish on...

Succinct Sunday - I Give It A Year

To Be... Or Not Meant To Be

Meet newly-weds Nat (Rose Byrne) and Josh (Rafe Spall).  They've only been together a few months and decide to get hitched.  No one thinks they'll make it, estimating it will end in divorce in less than a year. Defiantly, Josh and Nat struggle through a first year of marriage fraught with arguments, mistrust and temptation on both sides. Nat's new boss (Simon Baker) and Josh's ex-girlfriend (Anna Faris) seem more compatible for them then their other halves. Can they cope with all these attractive alternatives in their way?

Romantic-comedies are one of the most beloved film genres out there.  They make us laugh, they make us weep and they are perfect material for that awkward first date.  However rom-coms need to deliver in balancing the romance and comedy. The classics like When Harry Met Sally, Bridget Jones' Diary and Four Weddings... do this expertly, but it is easy to mess this up.  And here is where we find I Give It A Year (or in honour of Succinct Sunday, IGIAY).

Whilst there is comedy in doses, mainly found in Jake's best man Stephen Merchant and their unhappily-married marriage counsellor Olivia Colman, the romance is sorely lacking.  I was incredibly confused with who the audience is supposed to be rooting for; are we supporting Nat and Josh trying to make it work despite their disagreements and chastise them for looking elsewhere, or are we hoping they pack in this loveless marriage and be with their other suitor?  

It flits between these two narratives at rapid speed and becomes a jumbled mess.  The mere fact that I was sat in a pool of my own confusion, asking myself if we were supposed to hate the killjoy Nat and relate to the care-free Josh, or if Josh was supposed to come off as immature rather than the professional Nat, shows that the film-makers might have made a mistake in their storytelling. 

It is admirable that they are wanting to create an anti-rom-com in the same vein as (500) Days of Summer, but whilst Summer successfully showed an audience that sometimes it doesn't end happily ever after, IGIAY is very conflicted and confused within itself.

I give it a 4/10.