Below is “Early Roman Kings,” one of the new tracks from Bob Dylan’s upcoming album, Tempest, due for release on September 10. There is a bluesy riff through the song, and Dylan’s voice has the familiar croak of his recent albums. While his songs are always open to interpretation, it sounds like the lyrics on “Early Roman Kings” could be about the most recent economic recession and discussions about economic disparities.
They’re peddlers and they’re meddlers; They buy and they sell; They destroyed your city; They’ll destroy you as well.
Dylan is allowing the song “Early Roman Kings” to be used for the soundtrack of the trailer for HBO’s new series about terrorism, Strike Back.
Neil McCormick of The Telegraph was one of the few journalists who have heard the full album. He reports the songs are full of images and contradictions, and “There’s a lot of blood spilt on Tempest through murder and revenge, chaos and confusion.” Sounds good. Meanwhile, The Guardian reports that the new album could be the aging Dylan’s last, but it is the best work he has done in a decade. The reason for the speculation that Dylan’s 35th album might be his last is that Shakespeare’s final play was called “The Tempest.” On Dylan’s part, he has downplayed the connection, noting that his CD is called “Tempest,” as opposed to Shakespeare’s “The Tempest.” For now, I guess we will just be happy we have a new album coming out from Dylan.
There is a scene in director Len Wiseman’s new film Total Recall (2012) where we see someone who reminds us of a funny scene in the original Total Recall (1990) starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. If only the rest of the remake had the sense of humor of that one scene. It says a lot about the new remake that the only time the new film made me smile was when it reminded me of the original.
The new film follows the same basic premise of the original film and both are based on a short story by Philip K. Dick (whose work also inspired Blade Runner and Minority Report). Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell) works in a futuristic society and decides to go to a company named Rekall that promises to implant memories into your brain so you will believe you had a vacation or whatever fantasy you wish. Quaid asks to fulfill a fantasy of a spy adventure, and then it turns out Quaid is really a spy (or is he?) but did not know it and thus begins the adventure.
Philip K. Dick’s short story that inspired both movies — “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale” — is about the twists in the tale questioning reality. Although both film versions deviate from the short story, the 1990 film adaption did much to play with the idea of whether Quaid was really a spy or imagining the whole thing. It questioned reality while taking the viewer on an exciting adventure with some campy humor by Schwarzenegger and his co-stars. Regarding the 2012 movie, I give the new film too much credit by summarizing the plot about the identity issue, which is really just background for the real plot of the film: Kate Beckinsale does her best angry look while chasing Farrell through dim CGI special effects, occasionally catching up to him and fighting. Then it repeats again and again. You get a sense of that from the trailer.
With all the potential themes, ranging from questions about reality to colonization to invading another society, the film is not much more than a chase film. I appreciate the attempts to turn the original into a darker setting like Blade Runner, and I was intrigued by the decision to move the Mars of the original to a futuristic colony on Australia. But the movie fails to do much with the change, while wasting the talents of Colin Farell. Thus, although there are some good action scenes, one leaves the movie theater wondering what was the point of the remake.
Conclusion?: Rent the original Total Recall, which was directed by Paul Verhoeven and co-starred Sharon Stone, Rachel Ticotin, and Ronny Cox.
Other Reviews Because Why Should You Trust Me?Rotten Tomatoes currently has a 31% critics rating and a 50% audience rating for the Colin Ferrell film (compared to 85% critics/70% audience for the original). Because I am deviating from my usual practice of writing about things I like, I will just include a few positive review links: Slate‘s Dana Stevens said the remake is “a taut, serviceable sci-fi thriller with a couple of neat visual ideas.” Richard Roeper prefers the original but praises the new version’s special effects and performances of Farrell, Beckinsale, and Jessica Biel.
The movie theater where I watched The Dark Knight Rises (2012) had this poster in the coming attractions display, warning the audience for Step Up Revolution (2012). While the dance movie has garnered some positive reviews, some are concerned that a scene with the dancers wearing gas masks amid a cloudy haze might evoke thoughts of the shootings at the Aurora, Colorado movie theater during a midnight showing of The Dark Knight Rises. My theater, however, had no similar warnings for The Dark Knight Rises, a film that is full of scenes of terrorism, violence, and killings. I guess it is all about expectations, and one going to a Batman movie in 2012 should expect levels of violence that far exceed the Batman television show of the 1960s.
I have written about how movies often follow a familiar pattern of endorsing redemptive violence, showing a hero who is repeatedly beaten down so that we want nothing more than for the hero to rise up and use violence against his oppressor or oppressors. And The Dark Knight Rises follows this typical movie pattern, where we accept that the solution to the problems will be more violence. Director Christopher Nolan does present these themes with more complexity than other movies, as we see Bruce Wayne tiring of the Batman job while Batman still declines to use guns.
But I do not think that the movie violence itself determines whether a film is good or bad, only that we film-goers should be knowledgeable about the way our entertainment is used. So, that said, The Dark Knight Rises is a well-told story that ties up and concludes one of the best trilogies in movie history. So do not let the press about one crazy act in Colorado stop you from going to see this film.
The film picks up years after The Dark Knight (2008) left off, and it also ties in much of the story of the first film in the trilogy, Batman Begins (2005). Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) is a recluse and Batman has disappeared. A powerful new villain, Bane (Tom Hardy), appears, and we meet Catwoman (Anne Hathaway). We learn of a connection between Bane and Ra’s Al Ghul (Liam Neeson) from Batman Begins. And, well, if you have not seen the previous two films — or it has been awhile — you might want to rent them before seeing The Dark Knight Rises as the new film assumes a certain level of familiarity with the earlier films.
The acting is excellent, as Bale may give his best performance as Wayne/Batman, showing layers of character in Bruce Wayne and growling less as Batman than in the previous film. While Bane wears a mask so you cannot see his mouth, Nolan makes sure you can understand what he is saying. Commissioner Gordon (Gary Oldman), Alfred (Michael Caine), and Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman), return as much of the heart of the trilogy. The film also introduces new key characters, including young police officer Blake (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Wayne Enterprises board member Miranda Tate (Marion Cotillard).
The movie has several layers that may leave one wondering about the message of the film. Bane and other villains talk about the oppressed rising up against the rich class, which some have noted evokes recent protests by Occupy Wall Street. But as the bad guys advocate chaos and destruction, does that mean Nolan is against them? Or is he just incorporating the reference without taking sides? And is Nolan supporting the strict Harvey Dent law that evokes recent terrorism laws passed in the U.S.? The answers are not clear, but good movies give one something to think about after the lights come on, and The Dark Knight Rises is worth further thought and discussion.
Although the film takes 2 hours and 44 minutes to reach its conclusion, it did not seem long to me, as it tied together the various stories (although there is no reference to The Joker out of respect to the late Heath Ledger). About half-way through the film someone said something that made me realize how the film would end, but I was still entertained as the movie took some twists and turns to get there.
Conclusion: How does the film compare to its predecessors?The Dark Knight had the great performance of Heath Ledger, so I suspect most people will find that the second film is their favorite of the series. I also liked that The Dark Knight avoided the typical villain-as-brilliant-genius story and went for a villain-as-mentally-ill story, which as we see from the Colorado shooting is probably more realistic. But for the excellent screenplay asking more complex questions than a typical superhero film, a few surprises, and the way Nolan wrapped it all up, I would make a case for The Dark Knight Rises as one of the best final films in any trilogy.
I have already posted the trailer for The Dark Knight Rises, so check out a trailer for the entire trilogy, which reminds you of what Nolan and company have accomplished with the films.
Other Reviews Because Why Should You Listen to Me?:Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an 87% rating from critics and a 92% rating from audience members. The movie has received some mixed reviews, perhaps partly due to high expectations. Anthony Lane at The New Yorker says The Dark Knight Rises is “is murky, interminable, confused, and dropsical with self-importance,” although he finds the film redeemed by Anne Hathaway’s performance. The Daily Mail calls the movie “a pretentious mess.” Bob Garver at the Herald-Mail, by contrast, says the movie is “satisfying enough to be considered a worthy finale” to the trilogy. Lisa Kennedy at The Denver Post liked the movie even more, saying “the film is a feat of painstakingly crafted closure.” Omer M. Mozaffar wrote a very good essay about the trilogy on the Chicago Sun-Times website, but be warned that it contains spoilers if you have not seen the film. Finally, my reference in this post to “redemptive violence” in films, cartoons, etc. comes from scholar and theologian Walter Wink, who passed away this May. Although he wrote books on the topic, one of his short essays on redemptive violence is at Ekklesia. RIP.
What did you think of “The Dark Knight Rises”? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Mumford & Sons will release their new album Babel on September 24 according to the band’s website (although other websites list the date as September 25). But you do not have to wait that long to hear “I Will Wait” off the band’s upcoming second album. In case you have not been lucky enough to hear them play the new tune in concert like they did last October, check out the studio version of the new song through the video below.
Mumford & Sons bass player Ted Dwane recently told Rolling Stone to expect some darker songs on the new CD than were on the band’s debut Sigh No More, saying the band is “really excited to broaden the spectrum of people’s perception of what we are musically.” It sounds like fans will be excited too.
What do you think of the new Mumford & Sons song? Leave your two cents in the comments.
There was sad news today that 69-year-old British actor Bob Hoskins announced he is retiring from acting because — like Muhammad Ali and Michael J. Fox — he has Parkinson’s Disease. When I think of Hoskins a number of great roles rush through my mind, including his wonderful performances in Mermaids (1990) with Cher and in Hook (1991) with Dustin Hoffman. Even his smaller roles stood out, such as when he played Spoor in Brazil (1985) and Nikita Khrushchev in Enemy at the Gates (2001). His most recent movie was this year’s Snow White & the Huntsman.
But for me, the first thing I think about when I think of Hoskins is his wonderful performance as Eddie Valient in Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988). Although Steven Spielberg’s first choice for the role was Harrison Ford, the movie would not have been as good if it were not for Hoskin’s funny performance as the hard detective with a heart. His performance in that role made us believe a film noir character in a cartoon world. We thank Mr. Hoskins for the joy he gave us and wish him well in in his retirement.
In this clip below about the making of Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, the narrator talks about the challenges Hoskins faced having to act with characters who were not real. Also, Hoskins explains how he drew inspiration from his small daughter’s imagination.
What is your favorite Bob Hoskins film? Leave your two cents in the comments.
Below is “Early Roman Kings,” one of the new tracks from Bob Dylan’s upcoming album, Tempest, due for release on September 10. There is a bluesy riff through the song, and Dylan’s voice has the familiar croak of his recent albums. While his songs are always open to interpretation, it sounds like the lyrics on “Early Roman Kings” could be about the most recent economic recession and discussions about economic disparities.
