Tag: Viola Davis
How to get away with murder (2014-)
What starts of as a compelling legal drama and turns into a murder mystery quickly escalates into a web of lies and deceit.
It makes an interesting watch, while teaching its audience some legalese. What it doesn’t teach of course, is that the real world is very different and not as forgiving, or easy to fool or manipulate.
Full points to Viola Davis for her spectrum of acting talent, great production values and a super ensemble cast.
Ender’s Game (2013)
It took some convincing to watch this film, which appeared another ‘save the world’ genre, using the talents of young children’s gaming skills no less! Keeping the alien threat aside, this film used combat strategy and teenage psychology to come up with the most effective battle plan to save Earth.
The pressure the kids are put under seems downright unethical, because they are strategically being used for their ‘fearless, risk taking, abandoning feasibility’ type qualities. The training they go through, and how Ender is identified and rises up the ranks, balances the action/special effects quotient with decent drama.
We have stalwarts like Harrison Ford and Ben Kingsley supported by the talented Viola Davis, but the film belongs to the ensemble of young adults in it. Asa Butterfield as Ender, Hailee Steinfeld as Petra and Abigail Breslin as Valentine are memorable, whilst their peers that surround them are sincere to their roles.
An engaging watch.
3.5/5
Prisoners (2013)
The words ‘captive audience’ were quite appropriate for how I felt during this film. As the first scene began, I felt a sense of impending doom looming over me. The weather, the colour palette, all carefully chosen to weave a helpless mood for a bizarre and complicated case.
Sometimes we played detective, other times we were victims. Never did we feel like a bystander and for a film to achieve that for the entire 151 minute duration is commendable.
The events get more convoluted and we feel trapped, held against our will, wanting desperately to know what’s the motive and if it will end.This very essence makes it an experience, only if you engage yourself from the very beginning. Otherwise you might just get lost in the maze.
Jake is restrained with a visible ‘character tick’, whereas Hugh plays the emotionally wounded father with extreme pain and aggression. Director Denis Villeneuve requires you to bring your IQ with you, you need all the gray matter you have.
4/5
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