lizithekitty Reviews

Spring Breakers (2012)

"Natural Born Killers" wannabe

[1/10 · 22 March 2013]

Spring Breakers tries so hard to be like Natural Born Killers. It tries the hyper-violent fantastical approach. It tries the over-the-top approach. It tries the fever-dream visuals. It tries to have characters worth caring about but it fails in so many ways.

Harmoney Korine is as much of a hack as Darron Arnofsky whose films have a small, but strong cult status. The script is so childish that it seems like a 13-year old wrote it. There is nothing smart or witty about it. There is no plausibility to the characters motivations or redemption.

The acting is horrible. Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgins are atrocious. There is a reason they have not done any major Hollywood films since being Disney stars. Most Disney stars are not cut out for true acting, and it rings true here. James Franco... god what happened to him? It seems ever since he gained major popularity in the Spider-Man trilogy he has been phoning in his performances. His character is a cheap ripoff of Gary Oldman's jaw dropping Drexel in True Romance and what's sad is, Drexel isn't a pretender.

The visual style of the film is numbing. It tries to go the route of Natural Born Killers but fails. Oliver Stone's film was smart as it was a satire on media sensationalizing violence, whereas this film tries to glorify it with neon bikinis and black lights. A theme in NBK that was smartly used was the green lighting. Oliver Stone said the green lights signify the sickness that lives within Mickey and Mallory. What does the neon and black-lights in Spring Breakers represent? Nothing.

This movie is a major reason why Hollywoodnis considered a joke.

Brooklyn's Finest (2009)

The tortured soul of Training Day in NYC

[8/10 · 3 March 2013]

David Ayer probably wishes he wrote this movie instead of going on to do butcher an amazing James Elroy story and turn it into the painfully interesting Street Kings.

Brooklyn's Finest is dark, gritty and brutal. The opening scene is the biggest indication. You get character development, chatting and not going into plot and what is going to happen next and then you get a bullet through the skull. This shows you what you're in for. Story with violence driving it.

The three main cops (Gere, Hawke, and Cheadle) are vastly different from each other. Gere plays a veteran pushing retirement who drinks away his past and only adds to his pain and has a vice that would he perfect for the vice squad. Hawke plays a very Denzel- in-Training Day-like character, the major difference is that Hawke's character rationalizes his actions as a means to better his family life. Cheadle is probably the least corrupt of the three and is the character with the larger moral conflict. The three do not ever work together once throughout the film and their paths cross at multiple occasions but mainly in the finale.

Wesley Snipes is amazing here. His character is very reminiscent of Niño from New Jack City, but much more grounded and less neo-noir. Wesley makes a very good bad guy and the way he stares at characters commands fear and respect. Ellen Barkin in a small role is very much an amazing ice queen who isn't afraid to tell you to your face she will blackmail you as she is in bed with you.

Antoine Fuqua had amazing success with Training Day and since has been really been receiving underrated praise for his direction. Tears of the Sun and Shooter were films that I enjoyed fully. His style is almost homage like. Crane shots, medium shots, very little tracking, and cut-backs. It works because it helps tell the story and show reactions. Fuqua has an amazing talent for using brutal violence and not being shy about it. Bullets penetrate and exit a body with blood spurting out, but it isn't to a "shock value" effect as much as just to emphasize the brutality of the story.

Story-wise the "separate stories that finally intersect" is used well here as these are three unique characters with their own unique story. The ending is somewhat shocking and predictable, but it leaves you satisfied. If I may be so bold, it is almost a commentary for racial tension that many New Yorkers exists within the NYPD and the racism that is very much there as well.

Unlike Street Kings, Brooklyn's Finest doesn't type cast nor does it miscast it's actors. Everyone plays their roles perfectly, and Richard Gere gives his darkest performance ever.

If you enjoyed Training Day and wanted more, this is for you.