Gone Girl: Without a doubt the biggest "water cooler" film of the year. Once you see it, you'll immediately know what all the buzz is about. One of the things that interested me most is the above image. We see this at two key points in the film: the opening and the closing. How we react to this image is dramatically influenced by everything revealed between those two points. The image is the same, but our knowledge of the characters and their motives are vastly different. Is she guilty, surprised, deceitful, afraid, malicious, victimized, or some combination? This is the type of film in which you can't even trust the cat. Everyone is under the microscope, and director David Fincher is behind the oculars. He's a master of creating atmosphere and tension. Gone Girl is a carefully crafted and expertly directed whodunnit with plenty of play on point of view and the ambiguous nature of an investigation.
Fury: If you thought a movie that was about a crew of five men in a tank could be anything less than riveting, think again. Fury enters into a long list of WW2 films and features all of the usual archetypal soldiers: the war wearied leader, the God-fearing religious man, the new kid (whose experience introduces the audience to war), the foreigner, and the grunt. Fortunately, each of these characters is brought to life by outstanding actors who blend together and play off each other perfectly. The tank scenes in the belly of the beast suggest that each man is totally dependent on the next to "do your job - do what you're here for", no matter how gruesome. Director David Ayer extracts tension from every frame of the film and warns you never to let your guard down. However, one standout scene took place off the battlefield - the encounter with the two German girls in a worn-torn city. The scene is still fraught with tension which shifts from one character to the next as the main characters cycle through the frames. Not to worry - the battle sequences do not disappoint, nor do they feel tired or old hat. Anchored by Brad Pitt, Fury is a fantastic WW2 film that stands among the best of them.
Birdman: Wow. A stunning example of intricately designed filmmaking, bursting with originality and technical prowess. The entire cast and crew are at the top of their games and have successfully created a truly phenomenal cinematic masterpiece. Birdman is a departure from director Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu's typically morose yet gripping films (Babel, 21 Grams, etc.). Rather, the film is enveloped in the world of the theater, with flights of fancy at every corner. The film works on many levels: as a reaction to the recent influx/excess of superhero blockbusters that have been dominating cinemas as of late; a psychological character study of its protagonist (pictured above and portrayed by Michael Keaton, who is sure to earn deserved recognition for his performance); a genre-bending filmmaking experiment in which the director pushes the limits of the long take; a multi-layered original film that tackles the very nature of creativity/acting/fiction all while juggling multiple, interconnected story lines. It's a dizzying experience that's wholly one-of-a-kind.
Image sources:
Birdman = http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/sites/default/files/2014/06/birdman_a.jpg
Fury = http://imageserver.moviepilot.com/fury-slice-five-new-fury-clips-brad-pitt-michael-pena-and-shia-lebouf-look-intense-in-war-flick.jpeg?width=600&height=360
Gone Girl = http://img2.timeinc.net/ew/i/2014/09/11/gone-girl-01_1485x612.jpg
