The Quarantine Collection: Week 2

One morning of snow but five glorious days of sunshine that we can only enjoy through a window. The nightly viewing continues.

Fri. 27th : Band of Brothers, Episodes 3-4

DVD.

My dad and I cracked on with this stellar bit of filmmaking as the story moves into Holland. The third episode has a slight focus on Private Albert Blythe who experiences shock, temporary blindness and some intense conflict. The usage of German tanks is borderline frightening and the central scrap is tautly directed. 

Episode 4 details Operation Market Garden, the ambitious, colossal deployment of paratroopers in Holland which aimed at securing bridges in order to create an easier route into Germany. The action is just as riveting and frustrating as ever; one US tank shot early on could have averted the subsequent carnage if not for military protocol. The soldier in focus for this episode is Sergeant Bull Randelman, a cigar smoking, thick shouldered and capable soldier who ends up trapped alone in a German occupied village. It is inevitably a sequence that is wrung out for all the suspense it can produce. And yet despite the chaos, the episode still finds time for a little heart; a soldier giving a little Dutch boy chocolate leads to one of the most heartwarming shots I have seen as the boy eats away with the biggest smile on his face: we are told by his father that it is the first time he has tried chocolate. Now knee deep in this tv show, it is clear that the format is based around important military events but told through the eyes of a different soldier of Easy Company each time. 

Also check out : A Bridge Too Far (1977) for Operation Market Garden with one of the most legendary acting ensembles going. 

Sat. 28th : A Beautiful Mind (2001)

Blu-ray.

Before Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany navigated the Napoleonic seas in 2003's Master and Commander, they were navigating university together in this Best Picture winning bio-pic. I went in with the preconception that this was just Russell Crowe doing mathematics, so I was pleasantly surprised to see the narrative twists and turns that emerge in the second act. Crowe is pretty phenomenal as John Nash; indeed his output between 1997 and 2007 makes for a considerable decade: L.A Confidential, The Insider, Gladiator, Master and Commander, 3:10 to Yuma, American Gangster and this. It may have a conventional Oscar-friendly musical score, but this is a well shot (Roger Deakins) and inspiring story. There are some wholesome jokes and the film also treats the wife, Jennifer Connolly, with suitable care, something which true stories too oft forget. She is as vital to the true story as John Nash is himself. Ed Harris also stars as a black hat wearing William (*WestWorld bells ring*) who recruits Nash for Soviet code breaking. A Beautiful Mind is directed by Ron Howard who has certainly made some very good films over his career, but this is probably his best.

Also check out : Master and Commander (2003)

Sun. 29th : Public Enemies (2009)

Netflix.

Michael Mann is a repeatedly overlooked director. One of my favourites, he is responsible for three of the 1990s best pictures: The Last of the Mohicans ('92), Heat ('95) and The Insider ('99). 2004's Collateral is also fantastic but 2006's Miami Vice is a massive drop off. Public Enemies continues the Mann tradition of being crime centered with two high profile male leads. But rather than Al Pacino and Robert De Niro, or Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx, Mann uses Johnny Depp and Christian Bale. This Prohibition era crime film revolves around true bank robber John Dillinger (Depp) and his gang enjoying their repeated success, whilst Christian Bale's FBI agent is hot on the heels. Now I do recommend this film for those that have not seen Heat; the blazing Tommy gun action and performances are probably worthwhile enough. But if you have seen Heat, then you will be dismayed to discover that Mann is simply remaking that story but with a Prohibition jacket. One of the characters is a bank robber who finds love; promising them that they will leave after one last score. The cop is hot on his heels, eventually gunning down most of the other crooks until it is just the leader left. But whereas Heat is a muscular, electrifying thriller with stunning set pieces and legendary performances, Public Enemies is an overload of information and characters that strains the two and a bit hour runtime. Depp takes a while to get used to as this mastermind crook, lacking the physicality and intimidation usually required. But once he gets going and the cocky charm reveals itself he is pretty magnetic. Bale on the other-hand is short changed with a role that is given next to no depth. His character is bland, uninspired and without an emotional drive. We don't even get a reaction from him when Depp escapes prison. On a positive, the final 45 minutes actually becomes engrossing, and the final fifteen is admittedly magnetic filmmaking. But to wade through so many boring characters and lackluster action scenes to get to that does not seem fair. 

Also check out : Heat (1995)

Mon. 30th : Band of Brothers, Episodes 5-6

DVD.

Damien Lewis gets the spotlight in the fifth episode, battling his conscience after shooting a very young SS officer, as well a whole batch of Germans in what can only be labelled as a massacre. Tom Hanks is the director of the hour, hence the typewriter pornography. It is a wise move as this is relatively quiet in terms of action and choreography, allowing Hanks to develop his skill with criss cross editing and an intriguing look at Lewis' Winters, the closest the show has to a leading man. Despite being an American production, it is pretty impressive that the British Lewis was cast as Winters. But there is an enigmatic appeal to his sharp face and husky tones that makes him ideal for the well trained, immensely consistent lieutenant turned captain. The episode ends with Easy Company being set into the frozen woods of Bastogne. An ominous end as troops are seen walking back from the front-line, heads lowered in silence. 

The following episode takes us into the Battle of the Bulge and this is an ordeal of a watch. The audience surrogate is Eugene, a medic. In terms of gore and wounds, this is a ferociously bloodthirsty episode. It gives a detailed look at the difficulties of being a medic: having to run to crippled casualties as bullets shred the landscape around you. Eugene also befriends a local Belgian nurse who supplies him with chocolate and someone to talk to as the psychological effects start tightening the grip. The woods of this front-line are draped in fog and snow, turning the battlefield into a claustrophobic huddle whilst fending off Germans and frostbite alike. The command is in the hands of Lieutenant Dike, a useless, head-in-the-clouds officer who inhabits his foxhole rather than maintain morale or check on the dwindling supplies. This is the episode that showcases another horror of the war: the outdoor waiting. Improperly clothed and supplied, the survivors of the Bulge are not the same men as when they entered those woods. 

Tue. 31st : She Wore A Yellow Ribbon (1949) 

DVD. 

John Ford's second film in the so called 'Cavalry' trilogy is the best of the bunch, though it isn't much of an achievement. The three films (Fort Apache and Rio Grande came out a year before and after) document John Wayne as some sort of captain in the US cavalry doing battle with Native Americans, who for the most part are ill-represented and are depicted as vicious killers. Oddly, She Wore A Yellow Ribbon would have been better off as the third film. Wayne plays a captain who, in the last six days of his service before retirement, has to escort a young lady away. It is a typical mission film, but this soon falls apart and becomes the plot soon starts orbiting character over action. It is a rare performance from Wayne in that he is actually pretty decent and likable; a weary man longing to retire but also feeling his men still need his experience and leadership. The theme of the changing of the guard would have been more potent if it was the third film, as well as the fact that this is the only one shot in colour (and it looks grand). A reasonably good Western, even if the set pieces are familiar and unexciting. 

Also check out : Hostiles (2018)

Wed. 1st : Band of Brothers, Episodes 7-8

DVD. 

For 2001, the budget and production values of this show continue to stun. Episode 7 contains an overwhelmingly ferocious bombardment on the men of Easy Company as they struggle to find cover. The pyrotechnics display and the shaky, documentary style camera work makes an immersive sequence that shakes the very room with its sound design. The frozen woods are still the setting for another violent hour. This time Sergeant Lipton is the 'lead', narrating the events of the offensive capture Foy. The narration is not perhaps always needed, and it is jarring to suddenly have it seven episodes in, but the decision to focus on Lipton is inspired. This is one of the darkest hours for Easy Company; two of the best men get their legs blown off in another hideous display of the show's make-up team, hopeful future leader Buck is demoralised and taken off the front line and Lieutenant Dike continues to be frustratingly ineffective, in a short time joining Joffrey and Dolores Umbridge as a character who I just want to see brought down. The finale deals with Dike leading the offensive whilst Winters has to watch on powerlessly as his men get gunned down. There is fantastic moment where Winters grabs a gun and goes to run in, but is reprimanded by the higher powers. Lieutenant Speirs is sent instead, successfully taking Foy. Episodes 6-7 make for a bleak double bill in the frozen landscape, but the intensity rivals and even surpasses Saving Private Ryan. 

Episode 8 is a more upbeat episode with young Private Webster returning, as well as an ultra shiny and young new Lieutenant, desperate to see action. Through Webster's eyes we see Easy Company with a fresh lens: the men that remain from the start are unfriendly to those who did not fight at the Bulge or Foy and the brotherhood is now more closed off. The main focus on this episode is a raid into a German outpost to capture some prisoners. Whilst tense, the episode is relatively light on bloodshed and violence and instead focuses on the people and how the men are now seen. Despite the somewhat happy ending, the title cards at the end lay the show's endgame in sight: Germany is next.

Thu. 2nd : Absolute Power (1997)
DVD.
Having previously directed himself and Gene Hackman to Oscar glory in the almighty Unforgiven (1992), Clint Eastwood has another crack with this late-90s thriller. The plot is intriguing: Eastwood is stealing from a billionaires house when he witness an attempted rape followed by a killing. Escaping with a piece of evidence, Eastwood is hunted by those seeking to remain innocent, namely the President of the US (Hackman). Despite William Goldman's credentials on the screenplay, the dialogue does come off as ham-fisted and forced, with exposition laid on thickly. Luckily the bombastic story and sprightly, youthful performance by Eastwood keep things fun. Ed Harris also stars and there is something quietly comforting about his presence; I am not sure if it's because of the same balding resemblance to my father or his smooth diction and understated acting. Hackman, one of my favourite American actors, is reasonable as the President, though there is a ridiculously flamboyant sequence where he dances with his Chief of Staff, discussing the crime and what to do in a room full of people watching them. With constant cheesy smiles to the crowd, it belong in an 80s blockbusters and not a 90s political thriller. But this is an entertaining watch with enough thematic depth on voyeurism to keep the brain stimulated. Thanks for the recommendation Grandad!
Also check out : Unforgiven (1992)