Prisoners and Blue Jasmine: Desperation and Despair

I haven’t written for a while, I’ve been busy working but I managed to see both Blue Jasmine and Prisoners on Friday. Its funny some people wouldn’t dream of attending the cinema twice in a month let alone twice in one day, but hey. I was busy over the weekend, so these movies aren’t as fresh in my mind as they could be so I’ll keep my thoughts brief and casual. Just to note for those interested, I’ll be attending the London Film Festival in two weeks time. I’ll be attending nine movie premieres, if you wish to hear about my experience along the red carpet, mingling with the stars and information from the Q & A sessions then feel free to check back here. I’ll have it all covered.

 

Firstly let’s begin with Denis Villeneuve’s Prisoners, a film which has been on my radar for a very long time. The script by Aaron Guzikowski first came to my attention when it appeared on the 2009 Hollywood Blacklist along with Aaron Sorkin’s The Social Network. For those who don’t know, The Blacklist is a list of the best unproduced screenplays in Hollywood. I just double checked my laptop and I’ve had the original script for Prisoners on my laptop since 17^th July 2009, fours years ago. If anyone is interested in reading it, let me know and I’ll send you a copy. I probably have other undiscovered gems too but after years of pre-production which included various directors and actors linked to the project including Christian Bale, Mark Wahlberg and Leonardo DiCaprio, the film was finally made. Amazing! I’m surprised it took so long; I don’t remember exact details of the script when I first read it but I remember thinking it was very good. I’ll probably re-read it in the next few days to see if any changes were made, which is usually the case from a first draft, so it’s always interesting to read. I read a draft of Django Unchained a year before it was released in the theatre and the ending was completely different, it happens. Anyway remember in my Oscar Prediction post when I said, sometimes a film comes out of nowhere in the Oscar race? Well Prisoners could very well be that movie. I had my suspicions whether to include it in my predictions but personally I thought Prisoners would just be another regular Hollywood style thriller without much substance. But I was completely wrong; the film successfully absorbs the audience with countless brilliant performances combined with an intense, suspenseful, haunting portrayal of how far are we willing to go, to protect the people we love?

The film evolves two families, the Dover’s (Hugh Jackman & Maria Bello) and the Birch’s (Terrence Howard & Viola Davis) who’s daughters Anna Dover and Joy Birch are abducted on Thanksgiving after they were spotted playing near an RV driven by Alex Jones (Paul Dano). Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal) is assigned to the case, but when Loki cannot convict Alex Jones due to lack of evidence. Keller Dover(Jackman) takes the law into his own hands, kidnapping and imprisoning Jones, determined to find out the truth himself. The film is two and half hours long, I know some viewers have complained about the duration but I personally felt it flew by, the brief synopsis I just described to you, all takes place within the first twenty minutes so there is a lot of twists and turns along the way, that will keep you at the edge of your seat. Many viewers have described their surprise at the performance of Hugh Jackman during the film; the actor portrays a huge range of intense emotion and rage, fully embodying his character. Jackman was looked at differently by the majority of audiences after last year’s Oscar nominated performance in Les Miserables, but I assure you Hugh Jackman is a lot more then just Wolverine, he is a phenomenal actor. I’ve been a huge fan of Hugh Jackman’s work for a number of years, many people have suggested Prisoners is a career best for Jackman but I disagree, while he is very good, his work in Darren Aronofsky’s The Fountain is exceptional. One of my favouritemovies, if you haven’t seen it then please do. The range of acting Jackman displays in The Fountain is some of the best work I’ve ever seen on screen, which is probably while I am not as surprised and applauding Jackman’s performance like other critics. Don’t get me wrong, Jackman is fantastic in the movie, the interrogation scenes with Paul Dano are disturbing to watch at times with Hugh Jackman beautifully displaying the lengths his character is willing to go, to find his missing daughter. The desperation and rage are balanced perfectly that only an actor of Hugh Jackman’s ability could successfully pull off naturally. I’d love the Academy to show Hugh Jackman some love but I won’t get my hopes up.

One person who could capture the Academy’s attention and was the biggest standout surprise for me was Jake Gyllenhaal, who in my opinion actually managed to upstage Hugh Jackman which is a big challenge in itself. Gyllenhaal has had successful roles in movies such as Brokeback Mountain, Zodiac, End of Watch in which he has displayed his acting ability tremendously well but I personally felt his portray of Detective Loki was his finest work to date. A compelling, subtly layered performance of a man tasked with the impossible mission while dealing with his own personal demons. If Jake Gyllenhaal is campaigned in the supporting category, like Daniel Bruhl from Rush it would be category fraud as Gyllenhaal is clearly co-lead but I could definitely see him stand a chance of scoring an Oscar nomination.

Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal were clearly the two stand out heavyweights but with a supporting cast of two former Oscar nominees Terrence Howard and Viola Davis, an Oscar winner Melissa Leo, Golden Globe nominee Maria Bello and finally Paul Dano whose portray of the mentally handicapped Alex Jones also deserves some praise, it’s no surprise the film was brilliantly acted. The cinematography was beautifully shot by Roger Deakins, after his outstanding work on Skyfall last year, this was equally impressive. I hope he scores a nomination with the Academy. A scene in the final half of the movie involving a car sequence with Jake Gyllenhaal’s character in the pouring rain; portrays how outstanding the cinematography was. The film score by Johann Johannsson was masterfully placed during the movie, adding to the overall intensity of certain situations while Joel Cox and Gary Roach did a great job editing. Like I stated earlier, this 153 minute movie flew by. I was impressed by some of the directional shots by Denis Villeneuve, I’m not familiar with his work but a few interesting shots throughout the movie including the car sequence I mentioned earlier and a scene which included Paul Dano’s character imprisoned caught my eye and stood out but overall a great job. I look forward to viewing more of Villeneuve’s work in the future. If I had to criticise any part of the movie, I would point out the lack of character development for the women. Viola Davis and Maria Bello are two great actresses, who were able to bring something to their characters, but I felt a lesser actress might have struggled, because both characters felt very flat on paper it seemed to me personally as a writer.

So how do I think Prisoners will fair with the Academy? Well it’s received positive reviews from critics but can the buzz last until January? Denis Villeneuve’s 2010 film Incendies was nominated for Best Foreign Film at the Oscars, could he go one better and score a Best Picture nomination this time around? While I thought the film was a brilliant achievement on all fronts, I personally feel its chances with the Academy are quite slim due to the competition surrounding it. The movies biggest chances stand in the Original Screenplay and Cinematography categories with a chance of Jake Gyllenhaal landing a nomination if he is campaigned supporting. Depending on how loved the film is, it could stand a chance at Best Picture along with a nomination for Hugh Jackman but I find that very doubtful.

Oscar Potential

Best Picture
Best Actor in a Leading Role, Hugh Jackman
Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Jake Gyllenhaal
Best Original Screenplay, Aaron Guzikowski
Best Original Score, Johann Johannsson
Best Cinematography
Best Editing

 

 

 

Moving on to Woody Allen’s latest movie Blue Jasmine. While Prisoners will no doubt draw audiences in due to the star power of Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal, its unfortunate Blue Jasmine will probably go unnoticed by the general moviegoer because not only is the film an enjoyable watch, it has handed us our first genuine Oscar contender of the season in Cate Blanchett. I love Woody Allen but his movies are usually hit or miss, which is not a surprise since he seems to have a new one out every year. It always amazes me how Allen is able to capture the beauty of the various cities, he shoots his movies in whether it’s Paris, Rome or San Francisco, he never fails. Blue Jasmine focus on the story of a New Yorksocialite, deeply troubled and in denial arrives in San Francisco to impose upon her sister while dealing with her unprecedented past. The films narrative structure evolves around the tale of Jasmine shuffling between past and present time frames. Cate Blanchett, brilliantly portrays the difference between the glamorous high life in which Jasmine, bathed in privilege is willing to turn a blind eye to certain circumstances in contrast to her subdue reality of shacking up with her adoptive sister Ginger (Sally Hawkins) above a Mexican café in San Francisco. “Anxiety, nightmares and a nervous breakdown, there’s only so many traumas a person can withstand until they take to the streets and start screaming” quotes Jasmine, who is on the verge of a breakdown herself, in a booze filled desperation to build some hope of a new life in San Francisco. Jasmine is clearly lost and struggling to adapt to life without her businessman husband Hal (Alec Baldwin) whose whereabouts and Jasmine’s feelings towards him in the present timeline are hinted at but not made clear until the third act. Jasmine claims to be flat-out broke but arrives in San Francisco flying first class with a full set of Louis Vuitton baggage shows how deluded to the harsh realities of life, Jasmine truly is. But during her stay with Ginger and her Stanley Kowalski inspired boyfriend Chili (Booby Cannavale), Jasmine begins to learn the true realties of life, or does she?

While there might not be any screams of “Stella” during this movie, Woody Allen clearly takes some inspiration and puts his own modern spin on Tennessee Williams’ stage play A Streetcar Named Desire which was successfully adapted into a movie starring Marlon Brando. While the story might not be completely original, it’s surprising to think at seventy seven years old Woody Allen was able to write something which is quite relevant and impactful to the youth of today’s society. While Cate Blanchett steamrolls her way through this brilliant portrayal, and is clearly the highlight of the movie, the strong supporting cast shouldn’t go unnoticed either. Sally Hawkins brought the warmth and tenderness to her character Ginger to balance Blanchett’s self loathed character. Note I saw Sally Hawkins on stage last year; she’s a phenomenal British actress, who nailed her American actress. Alec Baldwin, Booby Cannavale and Peter Sarsgaard all performed well in their roles too but the main male standout for me personally was Andrew Dice Clay, who played Ginger’s ex husband Augie. While it wasn’t a major supporting role, I felt Dice Clay successfully portrayed the anger and emotion of his character, after feeling deceived by Jasmine and her husband. His final scene with Jasmine in the third act was beautifully executed. While I personally preferred Woody Allen’s last successful hit Midnight in Paris, Blue Jasmine is an overall stronger, more polished movie which Woody Allen certainly brought his A-game. Woody Allen may have written a truly fascinating character but only an actress of Cate Blanchett’s talent could bring the full range of Jasmine to life and still make her some what likeable, dare I say.

So how do I think Blue Jasmine will fair with the Academy? Well Woody Allen himself has four wins and twenty three nominations. He won Best Director and Best Original screenplay for Annie Hall along with best Original Screenplay for Hannah and Her Sisters and Midnight in Paris. That is where Blue Jasmine stands it biggest chance of scoring a nomination outside of Cate Blanchett, who will surely be nominated for Best Actress. The early release date could potentially damage her chances if stronger competition appears later in the season but if anyone is capable of carrying the highly claimed buzz thorough until January it’s certainly Cate Blanchett.

Oscar Potential

Best Actress in a Leading Role, Cate Blanchett
Best Original Screenplay, Woody Allen