Movie #131 - The Siege

"On November 6th our freedom is history."

I recently caught this 1998 film by Director Edward Zwick, and I noticed how prophetic this film was. Released three years before September 11, 2001, a day in which similar attacks on the U.S. was orchestrated by terrorists, Zwick's film discusses a number of major issues related to government policy and reactionary measures made during the fictional terrorism threats to New York City.

The reason this film was so compelling was that I watched it in 2009, during the post 9/11 era. Looking back, the reaction of the government and the paranoia that ensues in the film is quite similar to what the U.S. and other first world countries decided to do in order to combat terrorism.

Martial law was a very close reality for Americans and the threat that they faced in the days, weeks, and months after 9/11 were real. Zwick's commentary to how society would crumble and the removal of constitutional rights and freedoms on its own citizens due to racial profiling is still abundant today, albeit to a lesser extent. However, shortly after 9/11, this was a reality for many people and thus, this film is a must see for how accurate the commentary truly was.

Although the action sequences, suspense, and acting of this film are top notch with roles portrayed by Denzel Washington, Bruce Willis, Annette Benning, and Tony Shaloub, the movie takes some wild turns in the end, almost like a rush to finish the film. Throughout the movie, you are compelled to find out what happens - but in the end, you are left wanting more.

If you ever want to see a fictional 9/11 story, this is one to watch. There have been many 9/11 films documenting the heroic stories of the passengers of the planes and the World Trade Center victims, but this film looks at a fictional representation of what could happen if the terrorism threat in the U.S. becomes real.

Looking back at recent history, Zwick's predictions and conclusions aren't off base and it shows that fiction can become reality at times. I won't use this post to comment on my personal views of the state of society in relation to 9/11, but I urge readers to seek out this film to see its fictional parallels to the events that followed this important time in our history.

Movie #120 - Die Hard

"It will blow you through the back wall of the theater!"

One of the more entertaining films to come out of 1988, this film created the persona that Bruce Willis now utilizes in almost every one of his action movies. Definitely one of the crown jewels of Willis' career, the Die Hard franchise has been a box office success overall, and has some memorable moments for action movie fans everywhere.

If you watch this movie with a keen eye, you notice that the film was shot in a stretched lens, probably to make Willis look a little slimmer and taller, something that was pure illusion. Leading up to his Die Hard role, Willis was mainly known as a big time television actor, especially in his role on the romantic drama Moonlighting opposite Cybill Shepherd. That show started Willis' career and ran from 1985-1989, but was the stepping stone Willis needed to get into the big screen roles.

After Die Hard, Willis was over exposed fairly quickly both on the screen and off the screen. He quickly made a number of forgettable movies, too many to name here, and married Demi Moore, who was also one of the "it" female celebrities of the early 90's. Together, Willis and Moore became one of Hollywood's 90's power couples and thus, Willis movie career took off.

However, going back to Die Hard, this movie was both action packed, witty, and quite clever in its overall delivery. The concept of holding a bunch of people at the penthouse of a high-rise business building on Christmas Eve was intriguing and made for great suspense. The stars of the show, however, were the villains that were cast to contrast Willis (Alan Rickman and Alexander Godunov), and the supporting roles offered by the likes of Reginald VelJohnson and Paul Gleason. Other cast members such as Bonnie Bedelia and William Atherton provided some consistency in the sequels to follow, but were also strong in this film.

Without Rickman, though, the McClane character would not be as favoured, without a great villain. In Rickman, the casting was perfect. Although born of Irish and Welsh descent, Rickman is a chameleon type actor, similar to the likes of Gary Oldman or even Johnny Depp. Rickman immerses himself 100% into his character and has portrayed a villain in many strong roles over the years. His portrayal of Hans Gruber in Die Hard is one of the main reasons to enjoy this movie and this boosts the approval rating for the protagonist in the end.

Movie #35 - Lucky Number Slevin

"Wrong Place. Wrong Time. Wrong Number."

I have one more phrase to add to this movie tagline... "Wrong Movie." This is one of those films that falls under the definition of "money grab." Not only are there too many big names in this movie, but there are even knighted actors - Sir Ben Kingsley.

The concept of the movie is quite clever, however, as the movie progresses, it becomes quite predictable. Despite every attempt by the filmakers to deceive the audience, you anticipate the ending of this movie - which is what is supposed to make this a good film.

Maybe its because of Josh Hartnett, but ever since Pearl Harbor, I cannot stand this guy as an actor. He's been matched up with some of the major stars over the years, but there are only a handful of accomplishments that I care to include in his repetoire. Mainly, its Blackhawk Down, but only because its a beautifully shot war movie, but not because Hartnett stole the show. In actuality, he lost the show in that movie to Eric Bana.

The same goes here as does with every other movie of Hartnett's career. He gets overshadowed by the cast or by a stronger performance. With Slevin, none of these factors took place - but having Hartnett as the centrepiece of this big star film really was a poor decision.

Bruce Willis, Lucy Liu, Morgan Freeman, and Sir Ben Kingsley... normally, when you hear those names together, you're thinking blockbuster. But add Josh Hartnett to the front of that list... and from the word go - this movie is a bust.

The only thing that was positive from this film is the use of Hollywood North locations. Fort Erie racetrack is profiled... I grew up watching horseraces at this location, so it was fun to see it restored to its hey day. Also, there are some obvious locations in Toronto that were used for the main sets, but its not like anyone pays attention to that level of detail.