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Howl's Moving Castle
Two Versions available (Check Cinema for details)
1: with English subtitles
Cast: Chieko Baisho, Takuya Kimura, Akihiro Miwa, Tatsuya Gashuin, Ryunosuke Kamiki, Mitsunori Isaki, Yo Oizumi, Akio
Otsuka, Daijiro Harada and Haruko Kato
2: English Language dubbed version: (voices) Christian Bale, Jean Simmons, Emily Mortimer, Bill Crystal, Blythe Danner,
Lauren Bacall, Josh Hutcherson
Writer: Diana Wynne Jones (novel),
Screenplay: Hayao Miyazaki
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
This latest animated feature from Hayao Miyazaki has enough common ingredients to fit in comfortably with Princess Mononoke,
Spirited Away, and the rest of his body of work. It's the story of a plucky heroine, an alluring stranger, fantastic flying
machines, odd creatures, and powerful wizardry. For those familiar with Miyazaki's work, it hardly requires mention that it
features incredibly beautiful artwork and highly detailed animation. But it also has enough unique attributes to set it apart.
Howl's Moving Castle is set in an alternate universe, early 20th century Europe in which gigantic flying warships co-exist
with early automobiles and the common use of sorcery. The disappearance of a prince sets off military conflict between two
neighbouring nations, and all wizards are called into service to help their armies.
Sophie is a hard-working young lady who only wants to honour her father's memory by keeping open his hat shop. On the
way to visit her sister, Sophie meets up with a handsome but notorious wizard named Howl, who is trying to avoid being drafted
into military service. This chance acquaintance is misread as something more by the Witch of the Waste, who is in the service
of the king, and she takes time out to cast a spell on Sophie, turning the 18-year old into an old woman. At first Sophie
tries to hide the change, but the plucky girl determines that the only way of reversing the spell is to seek out the Witch.
Struggling to make her way through the Wastelands, Sophie chances upon the title edifice, an amazing conglomeration of
interlinked architecture walking cross-country on mechanical legs. Befriending Howl's young assistant Markl and the petulant
fire demon named Calcifer who runs the castle, the young/old girl makes herself at home, cleaning up the place and turning
the troubled group into a family.
The film's one real flaw however is in Howl himself, who plays Beast to Sophie's disguised Beauty during bouts when he
uses his powers to painfully transform himself into a large bird creature to try to protect civilians from the battling armies.
He also carries within him a secret curse that binds him to the castle and Calcifer, a combination that makes the usually
gallant wizard moody and intractable. It's clear that Sophie develops an instant crush on Howl, but it's difficult to see
why, or to detect any chemistry between them. She interacts much more easily with all the other characters, each of whom takes
the story in unexpected directions, while Miyazaki provides a steady flow of wonders. It's Sophie that keeps the tale glued
together, just as she keeps Howl and his entourage together (even with some odd additions), and even with her age changing
from scene to scene, her personality is strong enough to carry us through any twist of the plot.
A lot of attention has been paid to how Miyazaki can draw in viewers with amazing creations and renditions of the mundane
made wondrous through his expert draftsmanship but HMC really makes apparent how much of his magic is performed by simply
making his characters likeable and believable. The genuineness of Sophie, just like that of Sen in Spirited Away, Pazu in
Castle In The Sky, or any of his young heroes, makes her fantastic experiences real for us. It is the kind of magic trick
we come to the cinema hoping to see, and once again Miyazaki comes through.
Goal!
Director: Danny Cannon
Screenplay: Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais
Cast: Kuno Becker, Stephen Dillane, Alessandro Nivola, Marcel Iures, Anna Friel, Gary Lewis, Tony Plana, Miriam Colon,
Sean Pertwee, Frances Barber, Ashley Walters, David Beckham
1h 55min
Although it's a rags-to-riches, grim-to-glory-story by numbers "Goal!" has netloads of Geordie wit, some terrific
performances and a script by the twin genius team of impeccable pedigree (Auf Wiedersehen Pet/Porridge/The Likely Lads) Dick
Clement and Ian La Frenais.
Santiago Muñez (Becker) is a young Mexican who has illegally crossed into America as a child. He lives with his disgruntled
father (Plana) in Los Angeles, holding down two jobs and playing football at every possible opportunity. During one kickabout
Santiago is clocked by ex-football scout Glen Foy (Dillane with an oddly weird hybrid theatrical Scottish accent). Convinced
that here is an extraordinary talent, Foy calls up the Toon's manager (Iures - with a wonderful performance of quiety dignity
and authority) at 3.20am UK time. To shut up this nocturnal nuisance the half-asleep gaffer reluctantly agrees to offer the
lad a trial with the mighty Newcastle United.
Having arrived in a miserably wet and dreary Tyneside, Santiago has a month to prove himself worthy of playing alongside
such greats as Alan Shearer and cocky new £8m transfer Harris (Nivola).
In a film partly financed by FIFA, the tone is diluted for the obvious US market with every cliché free-kicked or thrown
in, from superstar booze & bird excesses to the glorious Geordie accents, albeit replete with some cracking one-liners.
Director Danny Cannon successfully manages to convey authenticity and adrenaline which is no mean feat for a football film
(think and cringe as you recall "Yesterday's Hero" and "When Saturday Comes" - and the football scenes,
though digitally tinkered with and over-enhanced at times, are pretty realistic.
The conclusion is relatively predictable, but as this is part one of a mooted trilogy, it can be forgiven - even David
Beckham scores - but then this time he's nowhere near a ball.
On A Clear Day
Director: Gaby Dellal
Screenplay: Alex Rose
Cast: Peter Mullan, Brenda Blethyn, Jamie Sives, Billy Boyd, Sean McGinley, Ron Cook, Jodhi May, Anne Marie Timoney, Benedict
Wong, Paul Ritter, Shaun Dingwall, Tony Roper
The Full Monty has such a lot to answer for - here's yet another tale about men attempting to regain their dignity while bringing
some purpose back into their lives after losing their jobs. Ho hum.
This time around our hero is Frank (the ever-excellent Peter Mullan) - a 55-year-old Glaswegian, bitter following his
redundancy from the shipyard. Additional emotional baggage stems from the death of his son years ago, which has strained his
relationship with his wife (an extraordinarily odd attempt at a Glasgow accent from Brenda Blethyn) and surviving son (a pedestrian
performance from Jamie Sives), who's now a father himself.
Frank's new passion is swimming with his pals (Boyd, McGinley and Cook), and in the pool he decides he'll swim the English
Channel, thus bringing focus back into his mundane existence.
In general the performances are relatively good, with special pass marks for Billy Boyd in a gently comedic role, Benedict
Wong as Chan the chippie and of course Mullan who never fails to give full value conveying Frank's shattered emptiness and
tenacious pursuit of what looks like a pointless goal.
Cinderella Man
Cast & Credits
Jim Braddock: Russell Crowe
Mae Braddock: Renee Zellweger
Joe Gould: Paul Giamatti
Max Baer: Craig Bierko
Mike Wilson: Paddy Considine
Jimmy Johnston: Bruce McGill
Joe Jeanette: Ron Canada
Jay Braddock: Connor Price
Baer's Cornerman: Nick Alachiotis
Directed by Ron Howard.
Written by Cliff Hollingsworth and Akiva Goldsman
Running time: 144 minutes
The less you know about the life of James J. Braddock, dubbed the "Bulldog from Bergen" by Damon Runyon, the
more you'll enjoy Cinderella Man, a meat-and-potatoes drama about the Depression-era pugilist. Not knowing the outcome of
his 1935 title bout against Max Baer increases the excitement of watching the expertly staged fight and ensures a genuinely
stirring conclusion.
The thrust of Cinderella Man is that Braddock's ability to box his way out of poverty was an inspiration to the struggling
working class of the era. Paradoxically, the Irish Catholic fighter out of New Jersey was inspirational exactly because he
lacked charisma, though Russell Crowe can't help letting some sneak out. Braddock compensated for his ordinariness with tenacious
honesty and devotion to his wife Mae (Renee Zellweger) and their young children.
By following this line of thought with a conventional approach, the team responsible for A Beautiful Mind - Crowe, director
Ron Howard, and co-screenwriter Akiva Goldsman - upholds All-American immigrant values in an un-psychological biopic that's
perfect for these neo-conservative USA times. Considering the crucial role of Braddock's loyal manager, the Jewish Joe Gould
played by Paul Giamatti, there's even a multi-ethnic, inter-religious dimension.
This suggests a depth that the virile picture doesn't possess however. It's a film about second chances that works on
one intermittently powerful level. Howard captures the brutish as well as the softer side of boxing, connecting each to the
social and economic realities of the Depression without much subtlety. In his defence however - any young filmgoer's ignorance
of modern U.S. history seems to necessitate flashing newspaper headlines about unemployment statistics.
Still, everything is spelled out with irksome deliberation in the first half of the film, starting in 1928 when Braddock
is on the verge of breaking into the elite ranks of boxing. His fortunes turn along with the economy, and, beaten down by
injury he loses a crucial fight in 1929. He's a has-been without a boxing licence, forced from his tidy suburban home into
a basement hovel. Struggling to feed his children, he works as a dockworker when he can. The proud and principled man will
not steal, and later returns money he reluctantly got from Public Assistance, but isn't above begging from his former associates.
Eventually, in 1933, he gets a shot at a comeback and makes the most of it.
Two dreamy premonition scenes flavour the realistic presentation and there's little about the mechanics of fighting, although
Joe's coaching and motivational words sound authentic enough. What the plot lacks though is a real villain and substantive
interpersonal tension. Mae makes a half-hearted attempt to keep Braddock out of the ring before the big fight, but this angle
doesn't really work. In fact, their strong marriage is as responsible for his resurgence as is his working on the docks, which
strengthened his left arm thereby adding a weapon to his arsenal. The story gets truly scintillating during the climactic
fight, a 15-round brawl with the vicious Baer (Craig Bierko) that's beautifully paced, with fresh camerawork and various feints
and misdirections keeping you glued to the ring.
Certain movies readily come to mind - On the Waterfront, Rocky, and Raging Bull - and maybe two less obvious titles: Seabiscuit,
about the unpreposessing thoroughbred, and last year's Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator. Like the racehorse, it's easy to
root for this underdog. Yet, whereas Martin Scorsese's film suggests the quirky industrialist was misunderstood, this protagonist
is psychologically transparent. You never have to wonder what makes him tick.
Braddock has ordinary aspirations and demons. He doesn't have Jake La Motta's volatility or the early Rocky Balboa's soulful
melancholy. Crowe transmits his generic personality well and consequently it's not an iconic performance. So too, the movie's
un-flashy, average Joe appeal will prevent it from becoming a classic. Cinderella was an everyday girl lifted above her station
by magic. Cinderella Man, a true story well told, lacks the magic of a fairytale.
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