Puncture

Initially 'Puncture' appears to be yet another reworking of 'The Verdict'; a washed up lawyer goes up against the might of the medical establishment in pursuit of justice and redemption. But there are some not altogether nice surprises in store for the unwary viewer.
Mark Weiss (Chris Evans playing well against type), is a lawyer in need of redemption. Instead of a drunk (like Paul Newman's character in the earlier film), Weiss is a womanising junkie. When a nurse contracts AIDS after an accidental infection from a syringe, she asks him to tackle hospitals, and the huge medical supplies provider behind them, about their refusal to adopt safety needles, a simple measure that would prevent further accidents. But as the big lawyers line up in opposition, his wife leaves him and his addiction becomes more crippling. All this while his pragmatic partner tries to pay their mounting bills.
So far 'Puncture' seems to be following the traditional three act structure, hitting its plot points on cue, just as 'The Verdict', a model of the classic Hollywood narrative, did before it. However, as the film progresses and the level of Weiss's addiction becomes apparent, bewilderment starts to set in. This man is beyond redemption; he can barely function. And yes, the movie should dip in the second act, but this much? And shouldn't things start to take an upward swing as we enter the third act? It all seems too dark. How the hell can they possibly win?
It is at this point that I should have remembered those printed words at the start: 'Based on a true story'. Truth may not always be stranger than fiction, but it can be darker. As the key phrase of the movie puts it, 'sometimes the brightest light comes from the darkest places'.
Most of the darkness , it has to be said, originates with the 'good' guys. In fact the bad guys are pretty standard fare. We have the clichéd 'something must be done' scenes with grim faced corporate types in dark offices, but nothing original. Only a refreshingly cynical speech by the main defence lawyer towards the end gives anything other than one-dimensionality to these traditional forces of darkness. Nope, Weiss's main enemy is himself, even accepting the implication the movie makes towards the end.
Luckily the film's main strength is in its depiction of its self-destructive protagonist and it is probably least convincing when we see him pull himself together. One way or the other, Chris Evans does himself no disservice in the role. If he doesn't quite wring a Travis Bickle like intensity from his material, he doesn't stoop to making himself uncomplicatedly likable either. The rest of the largely unshowy cast are fine too, though Michael Biehn is wasted as an ambiguous lurker in the background.
In the end, 'Puncture' reneges on its promise of courtroom fireworks. Unlike 'The Verdict', the legal battle ultimately takes second place to the personal, though not before we have been drawn into the former. It thus proves frustrating, ending where we might expect the real story to begin. This doesn't mean it fails though, for aggravating though Weiss appears, he ultimately wins some level of admiration, regardless of how unrealistic is the final course the film attributes to him. He intrigues us and his well placed sense of justice inspires. In short he wins his psychological case, persuading us the jury that he is worth our emotional investment.
No barrel of laughs, and no rousing David and Goliath courtroom drama neither, 'Puncture' ultimately succeeds in its heart-felt affirmation of justice and its celebration of a flawed individual.

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol

Yes, the action sequences are well-handled, and yes, it is a popcorn movie, but isn't 'Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol' just a bit too silly? As sparkling and shallow as Tom Cruise's smile, and probably about as annoying.

Margin Call

Although it purports to give an insight into the financial crisis of recent years, 'Margin Call', unlike the similarly themed 'Too Big to Fail', wraps its moralising up in a fictional tale of greed and deceit. It is more concerned with showing the psychology of the protagonists in that disaster than chronicling the processes at work. While this might be original, this has weaknesses as well as strengths. For one, it's difficult to really care about the pain some of these characters experience when we are all far better acquainted with the after effects in our own lives. Afterall, fictional or not, when these people lose their jobs, they leave with multi-million dollar bonuses. Boo hoo.
'Margin Call' also suffers from what I can only presume is a theatrical origin. It is riddled with two-hander scenes of 'pithy' dialogue. Everything happens in banal rooms, or the back seats of taxis, or the front steps of buildings. Considering the impressive cast - Kevin Spacey, Paul Bethany, Demi Moore, Jeremy Irons, Stanley Tucci, to name a few - this can provide its own pleasures. But it does give a hermetically sealed quality to the proceedings. Considering the huge effects of the financial crash on the outside world, it all seems too limited when simply discussed by a couple of smart, wealthy people.
Interesting, but not nearly as biting as it thinks itself to be.

The Artist

And speaking of movies that just work, 'The Artist' WORKS!

Moneyball

It's a bit of a cliché to talk about how baseball tends to inspire good movies. But it does (consider 'The Natural', 'Field of Dreams, 'Eight Men Out'). 'Moneyball' supports the cliché. Telling how statistics helped the Oakland Athletics get their mojo back, it, like its all-rounder hero, Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), performs exceptionally well in all areas of the game. Admittedly there is a lot of baseball, and yes, statistics, and I am not a sports fan, let alone a baseball fan, but it works. Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill are exceptional as the two men determined to upset the sports apple cart (it often plays as a buddy movie). The screenplay by Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin is rock solid. Bennett Miller's direction never flags, despite plenty of stodgy sports opportunities to do so. Then to cap everything Michael Danna's Elliot-Goldenthal-esque score adds a large chunk of class. They're the elements of the game, but the playing - the mix of romanticism and hard-edged pragmatism - gives you all the thrills of the 'last chance to get it right' story, while never allowing you to forget the realities that swallow the dreams.
It just works, okay? It just works.

Weary, Woeful Wheatley

Reading wise I had to give up Dennis Wheatley's "The Haunting of Toby Jugg". With an interest in the horror genre I feel it is incumbent on me to try out such writers, but there's only so much I can take. A right-wing polemic full on nauseating jingoism and anti-semitism. Bear in mind that this book is set during the Second World War in Britain; the only Jewish character is an amoral Communist spy working for Russia and trying to marry an British Labour party member in order to infiltrate Government. On top of this the story is dull, predictable and, considering it is supposedly a horror novel, distinctly lacking in scares. Indeed the strapping airman at the centre of the story (an heir to a multimillion pound empire no less), a man used to facing death a hundred times over in the air, spends the book in mortal fear of a shadow! The villain of the piece is just short of twirling his moustache. All in all a dreadful piece of claptrap. I stopped halfway through and have now started a novel by Norman Mailer.
Just to show I was trying to give Wheatley a chance, I also watched a little known Hammer film adapted from another of his novels, "The Lost Continent". Borrowing from Hodgson, Haggard, Doyle and a host of other turn of the century fantasists, it is the worst mishmash of seafaring junk I've ever had the misfortune not to throw up over. Avoid!

The Elephant's Graveyard

I was visiting my sick grandfather in Vincent's Hospital tonight. Buying a few things for him in the nearby supermarket brought back a lot of unhappy memories of similar visits to similarly sick relatives, gone now. I dread that place. Shopping for ivory on the way to the graveyard.

Tools for Change

Eamonn Gilmore gave a rousing speech on how technology is revolutionising politics. Social media, multimedia, mobile media and the wealth of new communication methods make it essential for a modern Government to conduct its business with a fresh attitude and an open engagement with its tech savvy citizens. No longer can we depend on the basics; a minister must be innovative! During the question and answers session he was asked what technologies his office used. "Email and um, text."

Democracy in Action

I was at a conference on International Affairs last Friday. As the Tanaiste, Eamonn Gilmore, got up to give the opening speech, a student raised a paper placard protesting about student fees. He was escorted quietly to the door by a garda and then forcibly evicted from the building. The theme of the conference was Democracy in the modern world.

Ken Russell RIP

The film director, Ken Russell, has died aged 84. A lot of people will talk about the bad he's done, some about the good, but he was always his own director and one of the wild ones. I believe the world is a far poorer place for his passing.

Wow!

Really sorry for not recognising this sooner, but I just saw I have 'followers'! That's incredible! Anyway Annabelle, Peter and Petra, thanks!

Dublin Contemporary 2011

Dublin Contemporary was a nice way to while away a wet Sunday afternoon. Certainly a lot to see and a great deal of invention in the exhibition itself, let alone the art works. A good use of Earlsfort Terrace and I must confess to enjoying it a lot more than IMMA.

Broken Egos

My poor brother broke his arm fairly nastily at soccer. I went to the hospital following his operation to find that he is on the up; as well as could be expected anyhow. In fact it might just be the drugs, but he seemed upbeat. While I was there the night nurse came in to introduce herself. 'So you must be his father...." I'm three years older than him. I left him a little more upbeat.