I put this one off for as long as I could. It’s time to face the music and get it done. I really didn’t want to re-watch this one, but I finally bit the bullet. Horror isn’t really my genre (other than maybe the Halloween movies).
To be honest, Giallo wasn’t quite as bad as I remember, but it sure isn’t good.
Here we go…
Cast: Adrien Brody, Keira Knightley, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Kris Kristopherson, Daniel Craig, McKenzie Phillips…
Written by: Massy Tadjedin, Marc Rocco, and Tom Bleeker
Directed by: John Maybury
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Running Time: 1 hour, 43 minutes
Released: January 23, 2005 (Sundance Film Festival)
MPAA Rating: R
In my top 10 Adrien Brody movies, The Jacket is number six. So, obviously, I enjoy it. There are just nitpicky things (or maybe valid) things that keep it from scoring higher.
Cast: Bryce Dallas Howard, Joaquin Phoenix, Adrien Brody, William Hurt, Brendan Gleeson, Sigourney Weaver, Jayne Atkinson, Cherry Jones, Judy Greer, Fran Kranz, Michael Pitt, Jesse Eisenberg…
Written and Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan
Genre: Thriller, Mystery, Drama
Running Time: 1 hour, 48 minutes
Released: July 26, 2004 (U.S.)
MPAA Rating: PG-13
It’s difficult to tell you much about The Village without spoilers, so I will be vague, and put most of my focus on Adrien’s performance.
The safest synopsis I can give you is: People in an isolated community live their lives according to specific rules handed down by the elders. However, younger residents seek to challenge said rules for the good of others.
There, I think that’s a general enough summary.
I’ve been careful to go in chronological order here, but I thought it might be nice to mix things up and review something that’s being released next week on BluRay/DVD (and is already available in digital markets, such as iTunes).
Thanks to my friend Shirley Ann for encouraging me to do so.
Cast: Adrien Brody, John Malkovich, Rory Culkin, Antonio Banderas, and Han Solo as “DeNiro” (the dog).
Written by: Paul Solet
Directed by: Paul Solet
Genre: It’s like a Crime, Thriller, Action, Drama
Running Time: 1 hour, 33 minutes
Release: December 8, 2017 (Lithuania)
MPAA Rating: R
Cast: Maura Tierney, Adrien Brody, Terry Kinney, Laila Robins, James Naughton, Paul Calderon, Dylan Baker, Frankie Faison, Michael Henderson…
Writer/Director: Richard Shepard
Genre: Thriller, Drama, Crime
Running Time: 1 hour, 32 minutes
Released: November 12, 1999
MPAA Rating: R
I want to start off this post by recommending that if you get your hands on a DVD of Oxygen, you listen to the commentary track. It features writer/director Richard Shepard, along with the movie’s stars: Maura Tierney and Adrien Brody. It is so entertaining. Really. Funny in parts, informative in parts, and deliciously awkward in parts. It’s a must hear.
Oxygen is what you might call “Silence of the Lambs Light,” with Adrien’s character getting into a seasoned police officer’s psyche almost as adeptly as Dr. Hannibal Lecter would. There is a sense of urgency in both films that drives these otherwise guarded women to allow these men (Lecter and “Harry,” respectively) in. To permit themselves to think like a monster for the good of the case. The story lines of the two films aren’t much alike at all, it’s the psychological aspect I find comparable.
