12 October 2012-10-12


Out in the UK This Week


Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap (Kaleidoscope, cert 15, Blu-ray/DVD)

Given how often rappers are being deliberately awkward, or cool, and how often an over-attachment to mind-altering substances can make speech too street even for the street, a documentary about rap sets alarm bells ringing in advance. Nothing could be further from the truth with Ice T’s overview, which kicks off with a declaration – “this film isn’t about the money, the cars, the jewellery, the girls… this film is about the craft”. And then it delivers. T’s strength is the access he gets, to everyone from Melle Mel and Big Daddy Kane, to Kanye West, Eminen and just about everyone who’s been anyone in the past 30 years. This is a fascinating, informed, good natured and intelligent documentary, with T showing himself to be a natural interviewer – he gets great stuff, speech, impromptu raps, out of just about everyone, even the obviously slightly over-refreshed Rakim. Entertaining, informative, surprisingly joyous, this is probably the best documentary on the scene there’s ever going to be.

Something from Nothing: The Art of Rap – at Amazon


Woody Allen: A Documentary (Soda, cert 15, Blu-ray/DVD)

There was a shorter cut in the cinemas but here’s the three-hour original, exhaustive and revelatory – Allen hated the much feted Manhattan, for instance – a proper run-through of the man’s life as gag writer, stand-up, essayist, clarinettist, actor, writer and director. It has its “now that you say it, it’s obviously the case” moments, such as Woody admitting what a great influence Bob Hope’s coward hero has been on his work. And it replays some of those early Allen stand-up routines, many of which are just as funny now as they ever were.

Woody Allen: A Documentary – at Amazon


Dark Shadows (Warner, cert 12, Blu-ray/DVD/UV)

Johnny Depp as a reheated vampire who just doesn’t get the modern world. Depp is a nugget of goodness in Tim Burton filmic warm-through of the 1960s TV series. And it’s a lot of fun while the accidentally re-awakened vampire is trying to make sense of trash-talking USA. Nice touches include him mistaking the golden arch of McDonalds for the M of Mephistopheles. But, as is so often the case with Burton these days, he doesn’t set out his stall properly and so once the final third of the film gets going – when the fun has to stop and something, anything, has to happen – there just aren’t any properly developed characters to propel the action. A bit of a letdown, then, in spite of lots of Adams Family humour and a really strong cast including Michelle Pfeiffer and Chloe Grace Moretz. There’s even a cameo by Christopher Lee.

Dark Shadows – at Amazon


Kotoko (Third Window, cert 18, Blu-ray/DVD)

With its horrific violence and nerve-jangling stylistics Shin’ya Tsukamoto’s drama about a woman (Japanese pop star Cocco) on the verge of mental meltdown reminds us that he directed the seminal Tetsuo films. As an evocation of paranoid schizophrenia it’s brilliant. As a drama it’s a bit of a bore because Tsukamoto won’t let us close enough to his characters, possibly because he feels we wouldn’t get them. Him wrong.

Kotoko – at Amazon


Wrath of the Titans (Warner, cert 12, Blu-ray/DVD/UV)

Giant fiery beasts, togas, a wingéd horse, the gods of Mount Olympus, noise, dust, beards, yadda yadda, this sequel about Perseus (Sam Worthington) heading into the underworld to rescue his father Zeus (Liam Neeson) writes the book on incoherent storytelling and direction. Feeling in every department as if it was made by the interns (though I suspect people with something to prove would have done a better job), it sparks to life only fitfully – when proper actors such as Ralph Fiennes (as Hades) and Liam Neeson are allowed to breathe godly magic into the damp clay of the script. And Toby Kebbel’s Agenor has a pretty good shake of the tree too. As for Sam Worthington, many words have already been written about his mystifying career. Let’s just say he’s utterly useless and leave it at that.

Wrath of the Titans – at Amazon



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© Steve Morrissey 2012


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