Netflix And Chill: Armored (2009)

The only feature script, to date, written by James V. Simpson, Armored is an enjoyable tense and entertaining little crime thriller that I believe still remains an underseen gem (although it got some decent notices when it was first released).

Columbus Short plays Ty Hackett, one of a number of people working for an armored-truck company. His co-workers include Mike (Matt Dillon), Baines (Laurence Fishburne), Quinn (Jean Reno), Palmer (Amaury Nolasco), and Dobbs (Skeet Ulrich). All of them seem decent enough, but they have a plan to make them all rich men. Stage a fake robbery and keep the money for themselves. Ty doesn’t want any part of it, but his growing financial problems and a promise that nobody will be hurt wins him over. So it’s all set. And then somebody gets hurt, which immediately pits Ty against all of his former colleagues. As an ex-soldier, he may be able to get the upper hand for a while, but the odds are stacked against him.

What you have here is a fun, tight, script, with a great concept at the heart of it, elevated by a superb ensemble cast full of people all given moments to shine. Short may be one of the lesser-known names here, but he's a very capable, and likeable, lead. Dillon has been a low-key absolute great for many years, and is especially good as the one who masterminds this plan. He's the one trying to keep his head while others are growing increasingly angry, or worried, and frustrated, and things are made even more tense by the way he can go back to being nice and calm, leaving viewers wondering how much of it is genuine and how much of it is just to get our hero in a position where he can be dealt with. Fishburne is not to be messed with, and has a lot of fun in his role, while Ulrich gets his best role in a long time. Reno and Nolasco may be a bit underused, but they're still a vital part of the group dynamic. There's also an enjoyable little turn from Fred Ward, Milo Ventimiglia plays a cop who ends up in the wrong place at the wrong time, and Andre Jamal Kinney is the younger brother of Short's character, a decent kid with some problems applying himself at school, and he's another factor motivating our lead to finally go along with the initial plan.

Director Nimród Antal does a fantastic job of making the most of the script, using very few locations without things ever feeling far too limited or low-budget. Everything looks great, the tight geography is clearly laid out, and each step of the journey is logical, with characters all dealing with the spiralling awfulness in expectedly different ways. One moment stands out for the wrong reasons (involving Nolasco's character), but even that doesn't feel outwith the realms of possibility.

It's the kind of film that you would have loved to find on your local video store shelves many years ago, one that you immediately love even while seeing why it wouldn't have had, or made any major impact with, a cinema release. Technically sound, with fine cinematography by Andrzej Sekula and a decent score by John Murphy also adding to the overall quality of the final product, the fact that it comes in at just under the 90-minute mark is also a major bonus. Antal knows the best way to handle the material, and he's done that with pretty much every title in his filmography (which is well worth checking out).

8/10

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Mubi Monday: The House That Jack Built (2018)

Another movie from Lars von Trier, another expected cloud of controversy and divided opinions. My own relationship with the man has turned around completely from how it used to be. I loved both Dancer In The Dark and Dogville but have strongly disliked most of his output over the past decade. Yet, to his credit, I still end up keen to see what he will present to us next. And I still enjoy hearing about how his work tends to upset people.

The House That Jack Built stars Matt Dillon as Jack, a serial killer who is relating the story of his "highlights" to a figure named Verge AKA Virgil (Bruno Ganz). Jack is supposed to be smart enough to have been killing people for a number of years, despite being unable to behave normally in most situations that place him anywhere near other witnesses, but he also wants to be caught. It's just a matter of time, which may mean that Jack doesn't ever get to finish building a house he has attempted on a few different occasions.

The first thing that struck me about this movie, after all that I'd heard about it, is how funny it was. This is Von Trier having more fun than he's had in some time. Oh, he's always had dark humour running through his material but this brings it right to the surface and is all the better for it. If you're worried about this being a bleak serial killer movie then the opening scenes should allay those reservations (although there are moments of violence that are quite brutal).

The second thing that struck me was how unfortunately hampered Dillon was in the main role. I really like Dillon in most of the roles he has played throughout his career, and this could have been a stellar turn from him, but he's not that good here. It's not entirely his fault. Von Trier has written a script, working with Jenie Hallund once again, that crucially can't decide on how it wants to portray the central character. If he's precise and smart then that isn't evidenced by the scenes we are shown. If he's just an ordinary guy who has remarkable luck in his chosen way of life then let us see some more everyday moments. Putting Dillon in the lead role and then not allowing him to use his talents to portray someone who could possibly be a much more effective charmer and killer is a huge flaw.

A lot of the other aspects of the film work, although we have the usual excesses and moments of self-indulgence from a director now so far up his own backside that he's probably created a whole universe in there, complete with planets populated by people who worship him. The runtime is about 150 minutes, there are tableaux moments, and some more unnecessary slow motion that I, once again, have to cede looks great but would be ridiculed if this was a film from certain other directors who have been known to overuse that trick.

Although this is really all about Dillon's character, decent supporting turns come from Uma Thurman,  Siobhan Fallon Hogan, Sofie Gråbøl, and Riley Keough. None of them are onscreen long enough, especially Hogan or Keough, but they all do well to make a lasting impression long after the film is finished,

If you want a gritty serial killer movie then you have to look elsewhere. You can also look elsewhere if you want some black comedy with your multiple murders. But this is the only place where you can find the two colliding with the artistic sensibilities of Mr Lars von Trier. That will be enough to ensure that some people never watch it. I'm actually pleased that I decided to give it a go.

7/10

You can buy Jack's house here.
Americans can rent it here.

The Art Of The Steal (2013)

The Art Of The Steal is a con/heist movie like a hundred others I could name. It's nowhere near the best of the bunch, but it passes the time pleasantly enough, thanks mainly to a great cast all having a lot of fun onscreen.

Kurt Russell is Crunch Calhoun, a thief/getaway driver who ends up doing a stint in a Polish prison thanks to a deal made by his brother, Nicky (Matt Dillon). Years later, Crunch is a stunt motorbike rider who provides some extra spectacle, in the form of some painful crash landings, for some extra cash. He has a young friend (Francie, played by Jay Baruchel) who hates watching it happen, but can't do anything to stop it, and a girlfriend (Lola, played by Katheryn Winnick) who keeps motivating him to do whatever it takes to make them some money. When a golden opportunity to pull off a major job comes along, Crunch ends up working with Nicky once again, as well as some other familiar faces from his past. He doesn't trust his brother, yet he needs him to make the whole plan work.

Written and directed by Jonathan Sobol, this is a movie that does just enough to coast by. It's clever, yet not too clever. It's derivative, yet not in a way that makes it feel as if it's directly lifting from any superior movie from this subgenre. And it is, despite its flaws, fun. The script does what it needs to do, in terms of the plot developments and twists, but it also throws in a handful of unnecessary moments that end up proving to be highly amusing. Just watch Jay Baruchel trying to bumble his way past a border guard and try not to laugh.

However, even with the decent script and direction, this would be an inferior film if it didn't have such a great ensemble cast involved. Russell is always a pleasure to watch onscreen. Always, and this performance is no different. Dillon is another performer I like seeing in movies, and I've been a big fan of Baruchel for years, so to see him alongside these actors was a real treat. Winnick isn't given much to do, but she does it well. Kenneth Welsh and Chris Diamantopoulos make up the rest of the main crew. Both are good fun, although the former has more great lines. And it's also worth mentioning Jason Jones and Terence Stamp, playing the two men who are trying to catch Calhoun and co. Jones is very amusing, as an agent who doesn't really have the experience to make people take him seriously, while Stamp is the exasperated old hand who also happens to genuinely love art.

If you're in two minds about whether or not to watch The Art Of The Steal then just flip a coin to decide. If, however, you like the main cast members as much as I do then you should have a good time. So flip the coin and then make the call when you can see how it has landed. Consider it a small moment of conning yourself in preparation for the film.

6/10

http://www.amazon.com/The-Steal-Blu-ray-Kurt-Russell/dp/B00IARA89S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404610534&sr=8-1&keywords=the+art+of+the+steal+bluray

You know what else is a steal? My e-book of movie reviews, collated and put together in one massive package. Every copy sold helps me justify my obsessive viewing and review-writing to my understanding, but exasperated, wife.

The UK version can be bought here - http://www.amazon.co.uk/TJs-Ramshackle-Movie-Guide-Reviews-ebook/dp/B00J9PLT6Q/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1395945647&sr=1-3&keywords=movie+guide

And American folks can buy it here - http://www.amazon.com/TJs-Ramshackle-Movie-Guide-Reviews-ebook/dp/B00J9PLT6Q/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395945752&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=TJs+ramshackle+mov

As much as I love the rest of the world, I can't keep up with all of the different links in different territories, but trust me when I say that it should be there on your local Amazon.

Wild Things (1998)

Wild Things is a twisty, stylish, sexy thriller that features a great cast all doing a great job. It's also quite trashy and stretches things further and further with each scene but I still love it (and, no, that's not just because of the scenes in which Denise Richards goes topless . . . . . . . . . . it's because of Theresa Russell too).

While aiming to keep things as spoiler-free as possible, I shall describe the plot thus: Matt Dillon plays Sam Lombardo, a popular and handsome guidance counselor who is accused of a heinous crime by Kelly Van Ryan (Denise Richards). It's simply untrue, according to Sam, but Kelly is the daughter of Sandra Van Ryan (Theresa Russell) and Sandra Van Ryan has the money and influence to make sure that Sam no longer has a place in his town. Kevin Bacon and Daphne Rubin-Vega are the two main cops on the case and Neve Campbell plays Suzie Toller, a girl who may end up playing an important part in the proceedings. Oh, and I'd better not forget to mention the great performance from Bill Murray as Ken Bowden, just about the only lawyer who will take a chance on defending Sam.

There's a clever, fun script by Stephen Peters and great direction from the talented John McNaughton (who provided audiences with the very different, and disturbing, Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer and also directed the enjoyable Mad Dog & Glory) that manages to create a darker and darker style while still maintaining the colour and heat of the Florida locations.

A decent score by George S. Clinton accompanies the action but the icing on the cake is the acting from everyone involved. Matt Dillon is always a great actor, as is Kevin Bacon, so you expect them to do good things. And they do. Neve Campbell is just fine and Denise Richards is fantastic (she's actually very good in the right roles, such as her part in Drop Dead Gorgeous, but that often seems to be ignored because of her physical attributes). Bill Murray is another actor I'd watch in just about anything and he's as wonderful as ever here. Daphne Rubin-Vega easily holds her own and does well to avoid her character being pushed into the background.

Trashy and sexy fun, this is the kind of movie you'll probably enjoy if you liked Cruel Intentions and the fantastic Body Heat. And make sure that you keep watching the credits at the end of the movie to see a number of crucial revelations.

8/10.

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