Podcasts

Talking Movies: Let Them All Talk, Infidel and The Sparks Brothers

Spling reviews Let Them All Talk, Infidel and The Sparks Brothers as broadcast on Talking Movies, Fine Music Radio. Listen to podcast.

TRANSCRIPT

Good morning – welcome to Talking Movies, I’m Spling…

This week, we’re talking about a coming-of-age drama, a thriller and a music documentary.

Starting off with a film now on Showmax…

LET THEM ALL TALK

A famous author goes on a cruise trip with her friends and nephew in an effort to find fun and happiness while she comes to terms with her troubled past.

Director: Steven Soderbergh

Stars: Meryl Streep, Candice Bergman and Dianne Wiest

– Soderbergh is a well-respected director who has a penchant for pushing the limits when it comes to the art of filmmaking.
– What makes this film unusual is that the actors have been encouraged to ad lib much of their dialogue to give scenes a more organic feel and tap into more naturalistic performances.
– This worked phenomenally well for directors like Christopher Guest, whose improv comedies have thrived on the chemistry of his tightknit troupe, their in-the-moment energy and off-the-cuff humour.
– Keeping things focused on the actors, Let Them All Talk is mostly about the purity of the performances rather than an enthralling story, lively chemistry or sidesplitting comedy.
– The premise of an author accompanied by close friends making some startling discoveries on a cruise liner has some appeal, yet rises or falls on the basis of the dialogue and undercurrent of intrigue.
-While the quality of the ingredients make it worthwhile, improv is not their forte and becomes incrementally more difficult under pressure to deliver poignant moments without lines coming across like a platitudes.
– This intimate drama has its moments, is essential viewing for fans of the actors but unfortunately is a bit too inert and loose to carry mainstream audiences.
– A gamble, Soderbergh’s cruise drama mines the story for nuggets of filmmaking gold and while he doesn’t come up empty-handed, the results are quite middling, mostly amplified by the quality of its stellar ensemble.

A satisfactory 6 on the splingometer!
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Moving on to a movie now on DStv…

INFIDEL

An American blogger is kidnapped after a friend invites him to Cairo to speak out about his faith in the wake of militant uprisings.

Writer-Director: Cyrus Nowrasteh

Stars: Jim Caviezel, Claudia Karvan, Stelio Savante and Hal Ozsan

– Casting Caviezel is a masterstroke, whose iconic performances in The Passion of the Christ and The Count of Monte Cristo reverberate, adding extra dimension.
– Nowrasteh is probably best known for The Stoning of Soraya M, an independent and harrowing drama set in Iran.
– Similarly, Infidel has links to Iran serving as a political commentary with the story highlighting the country’s imprisonment of American citizens.
– While this kidnap thriller speaks to the political situation in a general way with Caviezel serving as a figurehead, this creates some distance with the characters who become symbolic representatives.
– The emotional core of Infidel is about a wife’s attempts to rescue her husband from harm, possibly even death, in a tricky and ever-worsening international kidnap situation.
– However, as an old school thriller, there’s a stoic and fatalistic undercurrent that keeps this couple from feeling the full weight of the situation.
– As a film about faith, you can understand the predicament and what-will-be-will-be perspective of a man who trusts his God enough to become a martyr and loudspeaker if it is his will.
– Cleverly steering away from the trappings of safe faith-based drama to add authenticity and raw urgency, Infidel doesn’t shy away from coarse language and violent acts of torture.
– A thoughtful thriller, it thrives on engaging performances, suspenseful drama, authentic mis-en-scene and timely themes around martyrdom.

A satisfactory 6 on the splingometer!
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And finally a documentary on Showmax…

THE SPARKS BROTHERS

A musical odyssey through five weird and wonderful decades with Ron and Russell Mael celebrating the inspiring legacy of Sparks.

Director: Edgar Wright

Features: Ron Mael, Russell Mael and Beck

– Having grown up in an average American family, the Mael brothers took a cinematic edge to their music, combining sound and performance to create a mood in a similar way to film.
– Avid fans of The Beatles, whose evolution and reinvention inspired them, their trans-Atlantic trip was opposite to that of the Fab Four’s with just as many similarities with other British supergroup, Monty Python.
– Russell’s floppy hair and good looks obviously latched onto some of the Beatlemania fever while Ron’s Charlie Chaplin meets Hitler sense of style made him a strong counterpoint.
– Whether the message is to “keep on keeping on”, “be true to yourself” or “good things will come to those who wait”… there are a great many platitudes that intertwine in this entertaining and quizzical music documentary.
– While paying tribute to 25 studio albums and a group sporting about 300 tracks, The Sparks Brothers maintains good pacing.
– At over 2 hours it’s long for a documentary, but the elusive music, artful chronicle, aging process and swirling zeitgeist keep things interesting.
– It’s a little repetitive for those unfamiliar with their music or legacy, but their subversive comic edge and playfulness does offer some welcome comic relief.
– Playing to a niche audience, the inside joke isn’t for everyone and whether skating close to the edge with their lyrics, appearance, music or social commentary, they’ve created a fuzzy atmosphere that’s enhanced their enigma and simultaneously limited their mainstream appeal.

It did just enough to get an excellent 8 on the splingometer!
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So just to wrap up…

LET THEM ALL TALK… a strong trio of screen veterans steer this curious, intimate and slow-moving drama of moments… A satisfactory 6!

INFIDEL… solid performances, timely themes, gritty drama and serviceable action compel this somewhat distant kidnap thriller… A satisfactory 6!

THE SPARKS BROTHERS… this artful music documentary is entertaining, inspiring and eye-opening, even if a little longwinded… An excellent 8!

For more movie reviews and previous Talking Movies podcasts visit splingmovies.com.

And remember, Don’t WING it, SPL!NG it!
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