Prisoners Review

Keller Dover is a family man, a husband and a father of two and there isn't a thing in this world he wouldn't do for those he loves. Keller Dover is a god fearing man, devout in his faith to a lord that watches over him and his. Keller Dover also lacks trust in humanity on a grand scale, as he is always prepared for the possibility of a doomsday scenario. The end of the world. It sounds like such a blanket and simplistic concept, the end of the world, as in the planet and/or the people that occupy it would cease to exist, but I also think the world can end on a much more intimate level. It depends entirely on how you define the word "world".

Keller Dover had canned goods and gas masks ready to protect his family, but what he failed to account for was the possibility that his daughter could disappear one day while playing outside. Just like that, she has vanished, a tiny and helpless little girl, kidnapped by someone capable of harming a child. No matter how much he loves her, that alone won't bring her back home. No matter how strongly he believes in a deity, prayers seem like empty words when the god you trusted allowed her to be taken away in the first place. Keller Dover may have prepared for the end of the world, but when his existence is collapsing around him, when his own world is ending, Keller Dover isn't prepared in the least.  

If you haven't made the acquaintance of the film Prisoners, a masterful and chilling work by director Denis Villeneuve, please do so as soon as possible. It isn't a joyous experience, as it covers both child abduction and the darkness that fills the heart of a parent when they must determine how far is too far to look for answers to bring them back, but if you are simply a fan of exquisitely crafted and constantly compelling thrillers, Prisoners is near the top of the list.  

In his pursuit of evil, Keller Dover finds it in himself and thus a fascinating ethical question is raised to the viewer: if it were you, would you do the same? It's easy to say no instantly and believe you are better than that. It's easy to simply say things like "I would let the justice system do their jobs.", but heaven forbid you find yourself in that scenario, a child taken from you and a possible suspect in your grasp, lord only knows what you or I would be capable of.

I look myself in the mirror and ask, what would I do if I were in the shoes of Keller Dover?

Honestly? I think I may do the same damn thing.

5/5

Resolution Review

It's such an exciting feeling, when a film is announced that you know without a doubt you will be seeing with high expectations the moment it is released. A director is chosen and it inspires a reaction inside me, good or bad. Casting news, who will be composing the score, which top of the line cinematographer is selected to dazzle the audience with their keen eye. The first teaser trailer, a second one unveiling far more detail, and various clips to quench the cinematic thirst until the picture is finally released and I can take my seat, overflowing with anticipation, counting on the finished product being everything I could have hoped for and more.

This is the progression that many films take with me, as I am following the news and checking for updates on a regular basis, so when literally 30 some hours ago a friend of mine gave me a recommendation of a movie that I had never even heard of, I took notice. I did absolutely no homework after he told me the title as I decided to enter the experience as fresh as I possibly could, with an untainted mind and with the definition of zero expectations. I just clicked over the Netflix streaming, located Resolution and hit play. I was handed the gift of a fresh movie experience and I couldn't wait to unwrap it from the beginning. 

Directed by Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, Resolution is a deceiving, completely surprisingly experience and I mean that as a very, very big compliment. During the first half of the picture, perhaps even beyond that, I watched it assuming it was merely a well made but relatively routine supernatural horror film. I admired it throughout because it was very well made and clearly an example of making the most of a low production budget, but I just kept waiting for the obvious and expected to occur. However, as the conclusion drew near it became apparent that this was a bold, unique and original work that was headed in a far different direction than I has assumed, and a huge smile literally spread across my face. I am reminded of when I screened the Gareth Edwards film Monsters last year, one that crept up on me and knocked my socks off by the time the final frame left the screen. Resolution is so damn good.

The premise is basic and extremely minimalist in nature. Michael and Chris were best friends but are headed in very different directions, Michael a married man with a baby on the way, Chris literally hiding out in a cabin in the woods, addicted to crack and headed down a path that can only result in an early death. Michael decides to take one more chance at saving Chris and cleaning up his life, but this won't be a simple intervention or a heartfelt conversation while hoping for the best. Michael has a taser and a pair of handcuffs, and he is willing to use both to ensure that Chris can neither leave this cabin nor smoke the rest of his stash.

Early on it is established that this won't be simply a story of two friends working out their personal demons and trying to shake the power of an addiction to hardcore drugs. Something supernatural is taking place here, as an entity is making itself known through cryptic messages to Michael and its obvious that it is not happy. Now, this is a difficult part of the film to discuss without spoiling the experience, but the supernatural aspect was initially suspect and probably leading towards predictability, yet by the end it was absolutely the soul of the film, the piece that I loved the most and admire so deeply because of what it is really trying to say beneath the surface. In the end you may not comprehend what the message was, and this is understandable. The closing moments are rather ambiguous and confounding, but pay close attention to the dialogue during this film as they discuss that the entity is looking for a story and needed the right ending to it. Then the final words uttered of the film made it all click, and I wanted to stand up and give an ovation to whomever was smart enough to write this extremely self aware and clever screenplay. 

While far, far less comedic than the film Cabin in the Woods, I was reminded very much of that here with Resolution because bubbling beneath the surface of this story is a look at horror films and what we, the audience, demand of them. If you decide to pull up Netflix streaming and give this one a spin (and you absolutely should), think about the title and what it might mean: Resolution. The main characters here, Michael and Chris, come to one in the end and it certainly isn't what I could have ever expected, but would the supernatural force that threatens them allow it to happen? 

In the end this isn't a film about Michael or Chris or drugs or drug dealers or even the lurking dangers of a supernatural force at all. It is a film about expectations and the workings of the human mind, and in the end it asks us a question: do we want a warm and uplifting resolution in which Chris chooses to go to rehab, turning his life around and becoming close with his former best friend again? Or do we want exactly what we were expecting all along? 

4.5/5

The Hunt Review

It's so easy to take something as simple as the power of words for granted. On one end of the spectrum, certain combinations of words can bring warmth to an entire existence and enrich a soul, especially the loving thoughts of a child. What seems impossible to comprehend is that one untruthful set of words, a single lie derived from a mind too young and innocent to understand their ramifications, could lead to the devastating downfall of a man.

The Hunt tells the story of Lucas, a Kindergarten teacher living a lonely life with his beloved dog, hoping to gain more time with his son Marcus whom he sees far too little due to his divorce. Things begin to look up for Lucas after his wish for custody of Marcus is granted and he enters into a romantic relationship with a young woman he works with, but in an instant his world is torn apart because of one bewildering, graphic lie told by the young daughter of his best friend. The fact that such a thing would exist in the mind of such a small child leads those who heard it to believe in it, and everything Lucas loved and lived for is taken away from him.

In the role of Lucas, Mads Mikkelsen is so brilliant it actually made me feel a little sick to my stomach a few times. I would imagine this is quite the compliment to an actor as long as it is meant in the right context, a performance so riveting, so painful that it elicited a literal churn of my insides. The Hunt is beautifully written and directed, a nuanced masterpiece of dramatic filmmaking that forced me to sit through the duration of the entire credits before I even considered pressing the stop button on the remote. It's haunting, watching the will to live be sucked out of a human being due to something they are accused of that never happened.

While The Hunt is a work of fiction, it felt like anything but because the scenario presented is far too real. When a person is charged with a crime and the court of public opinion comes to the conclusion that guilt is the only plausible possibility, even when a name is technically cleared the stigma remains. Behind the smiles that surround Lucas are the painful reminders that an entire community will always look at him in a different light, as it is impossible to completely undo such a wrong that was done.


5/5