Review: Spectre - Not So Shaken and Hardly Stirred

Director: Sam Mendes

Starring: Daniel Craig, Christoph Waltz, Lea Seydoux, Ralph Fiennes, Andrew Scott

2h 30 mins Rated M

I didn’t like the James Bond films over the years. I think I enjoyed Goldfinger and then it was all pretty much ho hum after that until Daniel Craig ‘emerged’ from the ocean in ‘Casino Royale’. There was a significant slip again with the ghastly ‘Quantum of Solace’ which was more than made up for in ‘Skyfall’. And now we find ourselves on holiday with Jim down Mexico way on the day of the dead for the exciting opening sequence of Bond 24 known as ‘Spectre’.

The title of the film is the name of a global terrorist organisation known (apparently) to Bond fans as the warehouse central for most of the Bond villains. For an organisation so well known to Bond and MIwhatever they seem pretty amazing survivors and even better at hiding out and staging surprises that leave Bond, M et al flat footed.

So we have the usual compliment of baddies being beaten up, stunning set pieces in equally stunning settings and a complement of snazzy gadgets per favor the delightful Q (played delightfully by Ben Whishaw). There’s of course the female reduced to object of desire (played in this one by Monica Belucci and Lea Seydoux) but apart from a bit of dry humping on a mirror the sex is non-existent.

To lift the somewhat dull (and I have to say shockingly clichéd at times) narrative, the new head of a committee that has taken over the running of the MI6, now merged with MI5, Max or ‘C’ (Andrew Scott) keeps telling M (Ralph Fiennes) that the 00 programme is now obsolete - indeed “the digital ghost of the world”, (or another type of Spectre surely).

I enjoyed the hopping around on roofs and in basements, the highly unbelievable spinning in helicopters, a bit of a car chase, a plane pursuit, a boat spurt and even a nice train excursion. They’re well staged and Bondesque, if unlikely and ridiculous but fun.

We don’t get much of the more deep and reflective, emotionally challenged Blond from Daniel and director Sam Mendes this time. It felt a bit like filling in a bit of time until a better idea comes along or maybe even ‘if we never make another Bond this would be a good one to finish on’, I think the ship sailed on that with ‘Skyfall’. Daniel still does well with the role, pouting and staring away but perhaps not quite fitting into the suits as finely as in the past. Maybe a metaphor for the role and actor?

Christoph Waltz plays the villain Bloomfeld with all the depth of the stereotype as written. He vamps a bit too much for my liking and we all know his attempts to finish James of will fail so that cliché falls pretty quickly. I wonder if we’ll ever get a whitebread, anglo villain in a Bond film? Maybe rope Donald Trump in as a megalomaniac businessman wanting to get world dominance? Shouldn’t be too much of a stretch…

So for its collection of faults and clichés this is still an enjoyable couple of hours of cinema, well shot, well-staged, underwritten and perhaps not all that well thought out. I did enjoy it but I might not be as ready to rush off to the next one.

3 out of 5

Review: The Dressmaker - Finely tailored

Director: Jocelyn Moorhouse

Screenplay: Jocelyn Moorhouse

Starring: Kate Winslet, Liam Hemsworth, Hugo Weaving, Judy Davis, Sarah Snook, Gyton Grantley, Darcey Wilson, Barry Otto

118 minutes    Rated: M 

The return of the Prodigal is one of those enduring themes in fiction, books particularly but also in film. Some might consider it a trope (a now very commonly used insult which I have to admit I only became aware of in the last year or so), but I find it compelling when done well. In the vaguely gothic farce ‘The Dressmaker’ the device works more than well.

It’s 1951 - come the night come the prodigal as Tilly Dunnage (the divine Kate Winslet)returns to her childhood hometown Dungatar in country Victoria. Soon we learn her Singer sewing machine is not the only ‘baggage’ she brings with her. She believes she carries a curse from an inconclusive and ambiguous incident as a schoolchild related to her implication in the death of a fellow schoolmate. Far from being welcomed home the townsfolk rather see her as a ‘murderess’ back to stir up divisions and skeletons from the past.  Her bridge to gaining some respectability is her dressmaking/haute couture abilities (she has been working in Paris for years learning the trade)and don’t the locals flock to be frocked up. But there's more things going on in this story than, well in a country town on a summer's Tuesday.

Sentiment doesn’t get much of a go in this ever so slightly exaggerated and cartoonish feature beautifully crafted by Jocelyn Moorhouse (and second unit by none other than PJ Hogan) but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have heart or charm and even skirts some dark and tough matters. I don’t think the town’s name is some mere whimsy; this is a smelly hell hole where the kooky and snippy characters are trapped by or in their own limited world view. Also surely the allegorical names of characters (Harridiene and Pettyman for two) are deliberately invented.

The cast is almost all without equal as you would expect when you have an Academy Award winner (Winslet) and a company of Australia’s most familiar actors. The only bum note for me was Rebecca Gibney, who I usually admire, who was just not right. Judy Davis was perfect as the stroppy Mad Molly, pure cartoon but Davis still managed to give her nuance and totally engages the audience, man she’s good. Barry Otto, Sarah Snook, Gyton Grantley, Shane Bourne, Julia Blake and Sacha Horler were absolutely bloody sensational. Hugo Weaving was pretty good too but maybe a little too ‘wink, wink ,nudge, nudge’ for my liking. In the beautifully done flashback scenes I particularly enjoyed Darcey Wilson as the young Tilly, wonderful. Liam of the Hemsworth cult made the most of his role (and body) and was a perfect (if somewhat age match disconnect) romantic foil for Tilly. And it was great to see Kate Winslet and Kerry Fox back on screen again after a long break.

This was an entertaining, polished and engaging movie filmed in lovely locations in country Victoria. The flashback scenes (and the opening credits) had a stunning palate and look to them which contrasted beautifully with the golden, dry and colourful scenes of 1951.

From the popular novel by Melbourne’s own Rosalie Ham (who wrote the original ‘treatment’ a few years back), this is a gorgeous entertainment that I encourage everyone to see. Lush, tasteful, a little out of kilter and a lot accomplished because of precise writing, masterly direction and the best that good actors can deliver.

4 out of 5