Wednesday, June 18, 2015
"The Well"
"The Well" is an apocalyptic thriller set in a barren Oregon valley where water has become scarce. The valley has been without rain for over ten years and the once fertile land is slowly becoming a desert. The main protagonist is 17-yr-old Kendal (Haley Lu Richardson), who is the only healthy surviving occupant of a compound that once belonged to The Wallace Farm for Wayward Youth. The entire valley has been claimed by a sinister man who kills the old and the sick but keeps the young alive as part of his militia. This man is keen on killing anyone "stealing" water from his valley. Kendal has been successful at evading capture and survives by skillfully hiding a well inside an abandoned barn while tending to his sick boyfriend who is suffering from a kidney disease.
The film has enough atmosphere of dread but it doesn't fully rise to the promise of its subject matter. There is not enough and consistent suspense to fully engage the audience and the climactic combat feels forced unfortunately. Most of the characters are not fully developed and they seem to just pop in and out of the narrative whenever convenient. The presence of the little boy that Kendal is providing daily ration of water and his significance to the narrative (besides adding tension to the story) is somewhat lost to me, too.
This movie is probably designed to attract the midnight crowd but I don't think they will find the movie any different than how i find it. The photography is impressive.
Rating; 2 Stars
"The Road Within"
This movie can be easily described as a road movie that doesn't seem to go anywhere. It is bursting with endearing and winning performances from the three main protagonists. Robert Sheehan, Dev Patel and Zooey Kravits play young adults suffering from certain kinds of health challenges. Robert plays someone with a severe case of Tourette syndrome, Dev is obsessive-compulsive while Kravitz plays an anorexic woman who is just one heart attack away from dying.
The three meet in a rehabilitation facility and circumstances lead them to steal a car and drive to California to see the ocean. Their road trip is not without challenges. They fight, a couple fall in love and another realizes the potential of him finally getting well if he just takes that one extra step.
I wish I could say that i completely loved the movie. There was something missing in the movie. It is funny but not the kind that warms your heart. What is good about it is that it deals with serious mental and health issues lightheartedly without becoming offensive.
Rating: 3 ½ Stars
"A Thousand Times Goodnight"
We have all seen many pictures taken from war zones all over the world. The images we saw have moved us, some even compelled us to take some action. But have you ever wondered about the lives of the photo journalists who have risked their lives documenting those wars and taking those pictures so that the world learns of what's going on elsewhere? This movie tries to answer that question.
Juliette Binoche is Rebecca. She is a celebrated war photographer who also happens to be a wife and a mother of two girls. The movie tries to take us in to the domestic turmoil that Rebecca's job causes their family. Her husband is on the verge of giving up on the marriage while her eldest daughter can't seem to move on from the trauma brought by an incident that almost took her life.
The movie plays like a domestic drama but keeps the audience continuously reminded that there is a bigger conflict outside of this particular home that needs more attention. But how do you choose between your family and your vocation? Would you sacrifice your safety for the sake of bringing justice to the oppressed? Or, would you sacrifice your family for the same reason? Conversely, would you turn your back on the world just because your family fears for your life?
The movie is bookended by two powerful scenes set in Afghanistan. The scenes are similar but the power evoked by each scene is different. The opening scenes introduces us to the character of Rebecca while the closing sequence introduces us to her tortured soul --- and we all leave the theater shattered and broken with no confident answers to the question we raised. There's a silver lining, however, Juliette Binoche's terrific performance!
Rating: 4 Stars
XXX
Raymond Lo
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