Film – Clint Eastwood, festive distractions and a sniff of murder
Friday, 22 Dec 2006 00:34
Clint Eastwood directed and produced Flags Of Our Fathers
Set to take the Christmas box office by storm this week is Clint Eastwood's second world war epic, Flags Of Our Fathers. The film is based around the story of the six men who bravely raised the stars and stripes flag above Iwo Jima after the Pacific island was captured by US forces in 1944. It pits courage, patriotism and symbolism against the torrid horror of war – and there's plenty of explosions to boot.
Critics are divided over this film, with some seeing it as nothing more than trite gung-ho American garbage. Others are keenly enthusiastic, however, praising it for its poignant approach to warfare. Eastwood has been hailed as a director who has effectively transferred the pains of conflict to the silver screen without having turned the cinematic journey into an emotionally draining nightmare. It's the big release of the Christmas season.
Also out tomorrow is Zoom, the latest irritant from Hollywood funster Tim Allen. Perfect slapstick comedy to keep the children quiet for a couple of hours you might think, but in fact this picture has a fairly entertaining plot. Allen stars as Jack Jones, a former sprinter whose extraordinary running abilities were robbed of him 30 years ago. He teaches a bunch of kids with superpowers of their own on how to thwart the dastardly plans of evildoers, including his own brother. Hilarity ensues.
As is always the case at Christmas several big pictures are saving up their release date until Boxing Day, which falls on Tuesday this year. Among the biggest is Night At The Museum, the latest effort from Ben Stiller, which sees the Dodgeball star play a dopey curator who gets in trouble when he reawakens an ancient curse. Sounds like a bad day at work.
Watch out for surprise appearances from Steve Coogan and Ricky Gervais as Romans, Mayans and the odd T-Rex or two give Stiller plenty of scope for amusing running away screaming. That seems to be just about the bill of fare for this picture, marketed as the ultimate solution to keep the children quiet for a couple of hours. It seems a theme is developing.
For the more grown-up, who prefer a good stabbing to Santa or sleigh bells, Perfume: The Story of a Murderer is also released on Boxing Day. This tells the tale of an 18th century noble named Jean-Baptiste Grenouille who, unsurprisingly, is obsessed with smell. In an effort to preserve the scents of various girls who come across his way he kills them, bypassing social awkwardness but ultimately landing him in a bit of trouble with the authorities. Cue a rather strange mixture of sniffing, sinister killings and period drama which, fortunately for all, is graced by the brilliant Alan Rickman.
As anyone who has seen Rickman in the Harry Potter films knows the portrayer of Professor Snape's sniffs are worth the entry price alone. This film has more than one actor in it, however: Ben Whishaw and Dustin Hoffman also feature as Patrick Suskind's novel finds its way onto the cinema screen at last.