Noah

I have no great knowledge of the bible, so I can’t speak to the accuracy of the events in Noah, but I can imagine some things, were embellished, heightened or just plain added into make this one of the most interesting biblical epics in a long time.

I realise, that Noah has come under some flack in a variety of circles, mainly religious groups, either because of depiction, story or that they show Noah himself, a prophet. Something that certain religions take offence to. Before going to see it, you really need to push all of this out of your mind and take the film on its own merits and adaptation of the story. As essentially it is an adaptation, yes of a sacred tale, but this is Darren Aronofsky and Ari Handels (co-writer) take on this most memorable story.

Noah is Aronosky’s sixth feature film and bar 2006’s The Fountain his most ambitious and visually arresting. It follows more in the vein of The Fountain, than his other works, which have been more grounded and intimate stories such as Pi or The Wrestler, in that it is a story told on a grand scale, befitting the original story.

The film follows Noah and his family, after he receives a message in a dream where the Creator tells him that there is going to be a great flood to wash away all of the wicked and evil people in the world. Most of us will have heard the story, or at least be familiar enough with it, but Aronofsky does offer up a few surprises along the way.

Russell Crowe is kind of the go to man for historical epics as he is able to bring a weight and believability to the role and considering how well known this man/character is, the film needed a actor to invest in. The Noah we are given here, is very much a man suffering under the weight of the task given to him as well as the apparent contradictions that come with it. All of this is slowly and brilliantly portrayed by Crowe as Noah’s beliefs and understanding are constantly under attack, leading him to make a terrible promise to his son, Shem and his wife, Ela.

Noah looks stunning from first shot to last shot. While some of the big ark scenes are completely computer generated, they still hold up next to the rest of the cinematography by Matthew Libatique. The Watchers (fallen angels appearing as rock creatures) and especially the growth of a river sequence is probably my favourite in the film.

The siege of the ark sequence, which comes around half way through, is up there with the great modern action scenes of its kind, a much shorter Helm’s Deep. It feels dirty and frantic as the rest of the world (seemingly) battles to get onto the ark as the rain begins to fall.

Artistic licence has undoubtedly been taken with original story, the rock giants and Cain’s people I believe, aren’t mentioned in it. But to me at least, they bring more to the film than they take away. It adds a grand scale to the story and also a more personal/idea edge to it.

If I were to have a complaint about the film, it would be that it could have done with being five to ten minutes shorter. But while there is no one sequence or scene that stands out, towards the end some people in the cinema, most notably the man next to me, were starting to huff and puff and move about in his seat.

You will have heard bad things about it the film, but don’t believe them. I heard one radio personality refer to the rock creatures as Transformers, a statement so laughable I looked down my car radio in disbelief.

While it may not adhere strictly to the bible story itself, it is no doubt a sweeping, entertaining and engaging cinematic experience. It needs to be seen on the big screen.

Director: Darren Aronofsky

Writers: Darren Aronofsky and Ari Handel.

Man of Steel

Superman has always been my number two comic book hero, and in all honesty will probably always occupy that spot behind Batman. In terms of films, Superman has largely lagged behind Batman, only really offering two great additions to the genre (Superman The Movie and Superman 2), but with Man of Steel, the creative team behind The Dark Knight trilogy and Zack Snyder aim to help the first ever superhero to close that gap and take his place at the top table.

In Man of Steel, we follow Clark Kent from his birth on Krypton amidst a military coup, his journey through space, his formative years in Smallville and his search across the globe to find out who his biological parents and he was sent to Earth. Meanwhile, the events of Krypton, which I won’t spoil, ultimately leads General Zod to Earth in search of Kal El.

It’s a big role to fill in the eyes of both the general public and the more hardcore fan, but Henry Cavill has taken on the role of Superman (although he is only referred to as this once in the whole film, and apologetically at that) and truly making it his own, by taking the core elements of the character and updating it for the current time. One of the most original aspects of the portrayal, as well as the way the character is written, is his loneliness and growing isolation with the people of earth. This is something that wasn’t touched upon by any of the previous films, but is a key part the of best Superman stories (Kingdom Come by Mark Waid is a key text for the subject). But the journey through the film that Clark/Kal takes is the one of the most enjoyable and rich origin stories ever put to film.

Although, not all of Clarks character arc falls on the very strong shoulders of Cavill. Cooper Timberline and Dylan Sprayberry are the two young actors (who play a 9 and 13 year old Kal El) who have some major scenes that really shape the viewers opinions on Clark and are instrumental in gaining their sympathies and support.

Both have a key scene with one of the Kent’s, Timberline has a scene with Diane Lane, some of which was seen in the trailers, where she has to talk him down after some of his powers suddenly manifest themselves and he begins hearing everyone’s voices. Sprayberry spends more time with Costner’s Jonathan Kent, including a scene that features the infamous “maybe” line. It’s in these scenes that we see the difficult upbringing and childhood that Clark had, as he fought against his powers and his parents tried to keep them a secret to keep him safe.

The structure Man of Steel follows a similar structure to Batman Begins, with the first half cutting back and forth between three of four timelines, introducing a number of plot threads, which then breaks into the single driving events of the second half. This last half and everything that is at stake all comes as a result of the various triumphs and tragedies that have led Clark Kent to this point.

With all comic book films, a lot of responsibility lies on the shoulders of the villain. No matter how good your hero is, if he has no one struggle with or test him, then there is no tension or true stakes. Luckily for Man of Steel, Michael Shannon is on his best form, not only is he threatening and dangerous, but in a warped way his reasoning is completely understandable. He is the hero of his own story. His sole purpose is to protect Krypton and he is willing and capable of doing anything to make that happen. Shannon goes from calm and methodical, to crazed and emotional effortlessly, more remarkably, none of these transitions feel forced, but give us a fully rounded, almost sympathetic villain.

It’s no surprise that the story starts on Krypton, the original Superman did and so it feels only natural that the next version of his origin should once again begin there. That, apart from the destruction and Kal El being sent into space, is where the similarities end.

This sequence is amazing; it condenses so much history and social structure into ten or fifteen minutes, along with several action sequences that will leave you wanting more. This is down to the interplay between Crowe and Shannon, as well as Ayelet Zurer (Lara Lor Van, Kal El’s mother), which hints at a long and interesting relationship, twisted by differing ethics and morals, but united by a common understanding of Krypton’s fate.

Lois Lane can draw a similar response as Catwoman from some viewers, you either get the character and her interpretation, or you actively rebel against it, finding them clichéd as they try to force a strong woman into a male dominated narrative. With Amy Adams performance, we don’t get any of the irritating or helpless heroine that at times has plagued the character.

But instead we get a strong, independent journalist who you could see travelling the globe, searching out stories and chasing down this one of a guardian angel. In future films, this role and relationship with Clark is going to grow and could easily become one of the strengths of the series.

Man of Steel is huge, in fact that is a bit of an understatement, it’s an epic that spans not only our planet, but also other planets and another dimension. One of the criticisms of Superman Returns was that there wasn’t enough action, which is a fair criticism of that film, Man of Steel doesn’t make that mistake, it goes big, real big. The battle of Smallville is probably the highlight as we finally get to see Kal El’s powers in full force on screen. Buildings are torn apart, trains thrown through the air and fighter jets brought down left and right. Although, this seems to be a bit much for some people, who have found the level of action and violence in points to be too much, skewing the other way in terms of action content. It seems that some people can’t be satisfied.

This film is as much about Clark and his life going forward, as it is the story of his parents, all four of them. Of the three that Clark meets and talks to, they all pull him in different directions, offering their guidance and viewpoints, but never telling Clark what to do. They let him decide what he wants to, to aspire to be whatever he wants to.

Russell Crowes Jor El is so different from Marlon Brando’s that they almost feel like different characters; the only thing they share is their love for their son and the willingness to do anything to keep him safe. This Jor El is as physically capable as he is mentally, equally adept at arguing his case with Zod and the Kryptonian council, as he is fighting off anyone who stands between him and his sons safety. Another great part of this version is that we get to spend a lot of time with him, I won’t say how, but it’s in a similar way to the crystals from the previous films. It would be fair to say that Crowe almost steals the show.

Kevin Costner as Jonathan Kent may seem like one of those obvious bits of casting, and maybe it was, but it pays off for Snyder, as Jonathan becomes the voice of reason as well as the heart of film, who above all wants Clark to be safe. I could go on about this performance, but watch the ‘Tornado’ sequence, a largely dialogue free scene, that shows Jonathan Kent at his most important and Costner at his best.

The easiest way I can sum up this film is in two quick comments, firstly I am going to go and see this film again as soon as I can and secondly, GO AND SEE THIS FILM NOW. This film will sit along side The Dark Knight Trilogy, and hopefully spawn sequels of a similar quality, in spite of an apparent craving for a Justice League film.

Believe in Superman, he is definitely back to his best.