DIRECTOR: Ben Affleck
THE CAST: Casey Affleck, Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris, Michelle Monaghan, Amy Ryan
THE PLOT: Two Boston area detectives investigate a little girl's kidnapping, which ultimately turns into a crisis both personally and professionally.
BEN'S VIEWS: Gone Baby Gone is an unpredictable detective film centering on the disappearance of a little girl in Boston. One fresh aspect of the story is that it's a young husband and wife team (Affleck and Monaghan) as the private detectives on the case. This is Ben Affleck's impressive directing debut and he brings many strengths to the film. The biggest one being the stellar cast. Morgan Freeman and Ed Harris are great but when aren't they? Michelle Monaghan and Amy Ryan give impressive supporting performances. Casey Affleck surprises by carrying the weight of the film with a quiet intensity. The story is very twisty and contains a number of unexpected turns. Affleck (Ben) gives the proceedings a fitting somber tone. At times the film is hard to keep up with and other times it resorts to the ol' tired flashback device to dumb things down. But these are minor complaints and the film more than makes up for them with an ending that will stick with you.
This film really surprised me. Usually when you see a seemingly unecessary sequel to a successful film without the same cast members or director then the filmmakers motives seem to be money. When making money is the main reason to make a film then they tend to seem thrown together with little ambition or skill involved. But 28 Weeks Later defied my expectations and is an interesting and at times horrifying continuation of the original. The setting is 28 weeks after the riginal outbreak of the Rage virus. Most of the infected have starved to death and Britain is allowing survivors back into the area although under tight military supervision. Donald (Robert Carlyle) is reunited with his children after watching his wife fall to the infected. But soon after his wife shows back up and is seemingly immune to Rage. But the virus is still in her blood and all hell will soon break loose. Although the characters aren't as well built up as the original, the film is nearly as scary and bloody as hell. The only question is what is next? 28 Years Later?
Bug is an attempt at a different type of horror film from director William Friedkin. Over 30 years ago Friedkin directed a little film called The Exorcist, so he is not a stranger to the genre. Although Bug contains some pretty disturbing moments the film suffers from pacing problems. Bug is about Agnes (Ashley Judd) a lonely woman who thinks she has finally met a nice guy named Peter. Peter has gone AWOL from the military after having strange tests done on him. He believes that the Army has injected bugs into his body and that the egg sacks are growing under his skin. Soon Agnes is convinced he is not imagining this. There are some moments in the film that are pretty horrifying but they aren't enough to sustain the whole movie. The film takes too long to get going. Ashley Judd's performance ranges from brilliant to downright silly. Michael Shannon on the other hand does a stronger job as Peter. This is not a bad film, but its a shame because it is not the great film it could have been.
The science fiction genre gets a kick in the ass with Danny Boyles new film Sunshine. Although it is not a perfect film it contains many segements of brilliance and is so far the best film I have seen in 2007. The setting is in a future where the sun is dying out and as a cause the Earth is expereincing a nuclear winter. The planets last hope is a group of eight scientists onboard a ship headed towards the sun. The Icarus II, as it is named, is carrying a bomb with "the mass of Manhattan island" to re-ignite the sun. It's a good premise for a sci-fi film and Boyle runs with it. The action is "smart-action" as I'd like to call it. It grows out of the story naturally and is believable. Armageddon this is not. Boyle also includes some dazzling cinematography. The film is dark much of the time but the bright shots of the sun will make you shield your own eyes. The actors from Cillian Murphy to Michelle Yeoh and even Chris Evans are all solid. The story takes many unexpected turns toward the end and will keep you glued to the screen.
