HUSTLER SQUAD (1976)

The graveyard of exploitation cinema is littered with the corpses of good ideas badly executed. To that pile of rotting cinematic flesh you can add this Filipino actioner. It's hard to imagine how you can take an idea like the army training a group of women as killer prostitutes and make it dull but somehow HUSTLER SQUAD manages just that.

Directed by Cesar Gallardo, the film was produced by the legendary Cirio H Santiago and could sorely have done with him behind the camera. Sure, it would still have been cheap crap with a ludicrous story but you can be sure it would have been a hell of a lot more enjoyable.

That's not to say that HUSTLER SQUAD is totally devoid of cult movie appeal. The story itself can't help but at least be partly charming to the enthusiast of sleazy cinema - hardened maverick army officer trains women to bed the enemy and kill them - but incredibly the really tasteless stuff comes in justifying the ladies' reasons for agreeing to the mission. They range from terminal illness to revenge for being raped to the fact that one of them has been in jail for ages and needs a man. Obviously.

Given that the crazy soldier in charge is picked solely because "you're the most unconventional officer I've got!" you don't exactly expect too much in depth character development but even by the usual exploitation standards, the film is pretty thin. Perhaps most surprising of all is the general lack of nudity and violence - what little that does pop up is not all that impressive or sustained either, questioning who exactly this film (also released under the title THE DIRTY HALF DOZEN) was aimed at.

All in all, some brief promise shown early on only ends up climaxing in a bit of a damp squib. Along the way we are treated to bad Australian accents, terrific death spasms by anyone being shot and a training montage with wholly inappropriate jazz score.

I'd hate for you to think it was all bad though, so I have to award a couple of bonus points for any film that can, with a straight face, deliver a line like "I guess what the world needs is a few more nymphomaniacs with killer instincts."

Current release: CHANGELING

Clint Eastwood's latest comes just in time for awards season and, like so many of his recent films, it would be a surprise if it didn't pick up a few along the way (although I suspect the biggies may well elude it).

The story is a belter and all the more powerful for it being based on a true story. Dedicated single mother Christine Collins (Angeline Jolie) finds her son Walter missing from home one day and after some time has passed is eventually reunited... with the wrong child. When she is forced to accept the stranger into her home, it becomes too much and what unfolds is a story of motherly devotion, moralistic heroes, a rotten police department and the birth of modern LA.

Beginning as an intimate drama about a mother searching for her son, the film opens up as it progresses until eventually it's an epic tale encompassing... ah, but that would be telling.

Eastwood certainly seems to have settled into a look now, and its more of the same for CHANGELING. The colours are muted to the point of being almost monochrome, the music dialled right back to a handful of chords, the photography being beautiful without showing off - if you've seen MILLION DOLLAR BABY, LETTERS FROM IWO JIMA or FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS, you know what I'm talking about.

It's a shame then that Eastwood couldn't have exercised the same restraint with a couple of other aspects of the production, namely Jolie's performance and some of the dialogue.

Don't get me wrong, Jolie's performance is powerful and can fairly be described as excellent. Unfortunately it's all a little too much at times - too many scenes scream "give me an Oscar" - and as she sheds tears, screams in anguish and quivers lips at the drop of a hat you can't help wondering if it's a deliberate decision to make it stand out against the more restrained film or if Eastwood simply forgot about his less-is-more mantra.

As for the dialogue, it's a shame to pick on it as the script, by J Michael Straczynski is otherwise flawless, but unfortunately it is weighed down a little too often by the sort of corny speeches that all too often plagued his TV work (he's the creator of the excellent, ground-breaking BABYLON 5).

"One thing I know is that boy gave me something I didn't have before."
"What's that?"
"Hope."

I mean, come on, who really speaks like that?

These are but minor quibbles however, and are more than made up for by yet another directorial triumph for Eastwood.

Current release: THE NEW TEN COMMANDMENTS

THE NEW TEN COMMANDMENTS, mentioned here previously, hasn't exactly been a recent release as such, but it's had some cinema outings and a showing on TV. Not so much a film as a collection of films, each film (by a different filmmaker or team of filmmakers) examines one of the articles of the declaration of human rights. In hindsight, it makes you wonder about the name since it covers rights rather than commandments, but we'll let that slide since it's such an accomplished work.

Stand-outs are both of the contributions by Mark Cousins (one with Tilda Swinton which captures a love of cinema like few other films; the other with Irvine Welsh about the incarceration of Kenny Richey); examinations of the trial of the alleged Lockerbie bomber; the portrait of a man campaigning for a Scottish Republic; and an amusing look at a serious breach of privacy.

Truth be told, nearly all the films are very good, the only weak link in my humble opinion being Douglas Gordon's contribution which is little more than a dark room with random sounds. It's probably exactly what he was aiming for but it's not particularly cinematic.

I have no idea what further plans there are for this film but if it surfaces on DVD any time soon, pick it up.

Current release: RIVALS

If the makers of this French thriller were hoping for another TELL NO ONE by reuniting the stars Francois Cluzet and Guillaume Canet, I suspect they'll be disappointed. While that twisting thriller entertained huge audiences and was the breakout hit of world cinema, lightning is unlikely to strike twice.

The story isn't so much flawed as just too familiar. Canet and Cluzet play brothers, one a cop the other a criminal and when the latter gets out of jail and attempts to go straight it's not much of a surprise to see that it isn't plain sailing.

The performances by the leads are very good, there's some nice action sequences and the recreation of the seventies setting is superb, from the fashions to the wonderfully seventies cop movie music. Unfortunately the sense of having seen it all before overwhelms it and although the final scene is a brave one, it comes about twenty minutes later than it should have.

Current release: I'VE LOVED YOU SO LONG

Kristin Scott Thomas stars in this French drama as a cold, detached woman who emerges from a 15-year jail sentence and tried to rebuild her life with the aid of her sister who only just remembers her.

What unfolds is a slight but engrossing affair - it's a couple of hours of quiet misery with one big emotional scene to round it off - but mainly due to the performance of Scott Thomas. Aside from the fact that's apparently pretty good at French, it's just a performance of subtlety and conviction, one which has deservedly garnered her some award nominations. Not least of these is a Golden Globe nod, though it's tough to see her actually being recognised for it.

However, the acting chops on display won't disguise the fact that there's not much in the way of a story and after it being fleshed out for so long you expect more than the less than surprising reveal about the nature of the woman's crime.

Well worth watching for the performances but if you prefer a little more meat on the bones of your movies, it's probably not worth sticking this at the top of your queue.

SEACHD - Christmas viewing

Nope, not the Irish-language TV series, but the Scottish film.

The excellent Gaelic film SEACHD: THE INACCESIBLE PINNACLE is airing on the BBC Alba digital channel on Christmas day at 9:30pm.

No gangsters, no junkies, no rocky marriages, no run-down housing estates, no alcoholics... and yet it's a Scottish film.

To remind yourselves what our film industry can achieve when it takes its inspiration from our country rather than our problems, check out this gem of a film.

THE DARK KNIGHT - not as dark now?

So, over on the Melon Farmers anti-censorship site there's a guy who reckons that a scene in THE DARK KNIGHT, in which the Joker slashes someone's face with a knife, has been trimmed for the UK DVD release.

Now that doesn't surprise me; it happens frequently. There's nothing on the BBFC site to suggest a forced cut, so if it's been cut then it could well have been pre-cut, or else cut under advice from the board. It's even less surprising given the fuss about the level of violence for a film with a 12A certificate, and of course it was unfortunately released around the same time as a massive drive to cut knife crime in the UK which caused a spate of tragic deaths of young people. Of course, because films always come under scrutiny for things like this, THE DARK KNIGHT came under direct attack for the Joker and his casual attitude to knives.

So I understand if that's been done, although I certainly don't approve. Anyway, back to my point.

When watching the film again for the first time since its original release on Sunday afternoon, I happened to notice exactly the same thing and also was convinced that they'd cut that very same part of the scene. Here's the part that interests me though - I was watching it in the cinema. One of my local cinemas does double bills every Sunday and this time it was Nolan's two Batman films, so along I went.

So does anyone know what has happened here? I noticed this at the time, before I'd read the piece on Melon Farmers, so the idea was not planted in my mind by that article. Have two completely unrelated people just imagined this under totally different circumstances?

If we're right, is there any explanation anywhere of who did it and why?

And finally, assuming my mind is not playing tricks on me, this seems to be an interesting precedent regarding retroactively cutting cinema prints (or at least replacing prints with cut ones). Has there been any other examples of this kind of retroactive tampering?

I don't imagine for a minute that this will become widespread practice but it certainly is something to think about. (Incidentally, the print did have the BBFC card before it, so I'm assuming it's not an issue with picking up a print from another country or anything like that.)

There's a lesson here I guess. Next time you want to see a violent movie and in its original, uncensored form, see it at the cinema as soon as you can. If there's any kind of media furore around it, it might be the last opportunity you get.

Current release: ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO

Are you familiar with Kevin Smith films? Do you like his movies, apart from JERSEY GIRL?

If you're a fan, there's plenty on offer here to amuse you. Smith regulars pop up in the cast (Mewes, Anderson) and all the usual ingredients of his better films are present and correct.

Perhaps trying to capture the current blockbuster comedy audience, rising star Seth Rogen takes the lead this time (alongside Miri, Elizabeth Banks) in a likable story about two struggling friends who turn to making an adult movie to pay their bills.

Smith's films have long been regarded by many (including Smith himself I should think) as John Hughes movies with swearwords, and this is taken to new extremes here. Now it's a John Hughes film with swearing and explicit sex. If that sounds shocking, you're probably not a fan and you can ignore this movie without your life being any poorer.

Those of us who like Smith's films however will be pleased to find more of the same sharp dialogue, risque humour and gobsmacking obscenity once again wrapped around a surprisingly touching and heartfelt tale of love and friendship.

It never quite reaches the dizzy heights of his best films but it's another winner.

Current release: WALTZ WITH BASHIR

Best described as a documentary in animated form, WALTZ WITH BASHIR follows director Ari Folman's attempts to access suppressed memories of his time as an Israeli soldier in the early 1980s.

The animation is limited in many places but since a lot of the film is talking heads kind of stuff it seems to suit - but it's all the more effective for when the film blossoms into its incredible visuals.

The opening scene is an adrenalin-pumping standout - a fierce-looking pack of dogs charge down a city street - but equally effective are the more serene, haunting moments such as the repeated flashback to an image of three soldiers emerging from the water as the coast is lit up by falling flares.

A fascinating story unfolds, gradually revealing the horror of a massacre of innocent people that took place during the conflict and why it happened. As visually stunning as the film is, it is the shocking and powerful cut to real-life documentary footage at the end of the film that delivers the final punch.

It's a very powerful film and while I have no doubt that WALL-E will walk away with the animated feature Oscar next year, it'll be a crime if WALTZ WITH BASHIR isn't up there in the nominations at least. This is exactly the sort of groundbreaking, original film that should be getting such recognition.

Current release: BLINDNESS

Despite the Cannes backlash and some pretty poor reviews, I'd been looking forward to seeing BLINDNESS. It was a bit of a let-down. The story has plenty of potential (people suddenly lose their sight in an apparently contagious outbreak of blindness) even if it does sound like DAY OF THE TRIFFIDS without the triffids.

Alas, it ends up being a second rate rehash of other such apocalyptic themes with more than a dash of "Lord of the Flies" about it. It's weighed down with occasional bursts of a terrible voiceover by Danny Glover, the visual tricks designed to be cleverly disorienting just end up grating and it's got a "twist" in the tail that you'd have to be asleep not to anticipate.

On top of that, it's adapted by and features Don McKellar, has a cameo by Sandra Oh, concerns the end of the world, is partially shot in Toronto and features a lot of bright white, sterile visuals - all of which made me think of McKellar's Canadian apocalypse movie LAST NIGHT. Unfortunately LAST NIGHT is a much better film.

Weirdly, BLINDNESS has the feel of a film that might actually grow on me. I'll perhaps revisit it in a year or two to see how it holds up, but for now it's a missed opportunity.

Hear it here first. Sometimes.

I'm about to start covering some of the recent films I've seen again but there's every chance that by the time I've written about them they'll probably have already stopped showing at cinemas anyway. That's life I guess.

However, before you write me off as being hopelessly out of date again, I'd just like to point out that the film which UK readers will have seen splashed all over the news yesterday (RIGHT TO DIE?) was reviewed right here in the Freakpit a year and a half ago, under its original title of THE SUICIDE TOURIST. So there you go, occasionally this blog is the place to hear about great new stuff well in advance of Joe Public.

Occasionally.

More on Scottish films

Following my previous post regarding the Bill Douglas trilogy and St Andrew's Day, I should mention that I did at least celebrate the day in a film-related manner.

I took a trip to the GFT to see THE ST KILDA TAPES, a compilation of archive footage and new material relating to the remote Scottish island, put together with a new score (performed live at the event) by David Allison.

The archive footage (featuring the excellent ST KILDA: BRITAIN'S LONELIEST ISLE and some marvellous footage of emigrants sailing from Glasgow to North America) was terrific, and was enhanced by interviews with a man who actually lived there as a boy before its evacuation in 1930.

The newer material didn't go down quite as well in comparison - the time-lapse photography of Edinburgh was great but not altogether relevant, and some of it really looked like a student project. Some people left before the end and while I wouldn't go that far, it's fair to say that the newer material certainly wasn't as interesting and didn't really sit with the rest of the films - it would be better served as part of an entirely different project. Full marks for the live music though.

Still talking of things Scottish, I should point out that the Scottish anthology film collection THE NEW TEN COMMANDMENTS, which premiered in Edinburgh this year, is doing the rounds this month, including another screening at Filmhouse in Edinburgh on the 14th, but if you can't wait that long or are just too lazy, it's on BBC Scotland this Sunday.

The Filmhouse will also be having another screening of TROUBLE SLEEPING (this weekend), which is also showing elsewhere this month.

Finally, since I covered the BFI's DVD release of THE BILL DOUGLAS TRILOGY, I should also mention another must-own DVD purchase for fans of Scottish film.

It was released last year so I should really have mentioned it before now, but there is a 4-disc DVD collection (also available separately) called THE PETER MCDOUGALL COLLECTION. Quite appropriate that I should mention it now however, since he picked up a Scottish BAFTA last month for his work. This DVD release probably did its bit to help I suspect.

While technically made for TV, I guess I can still call these films since most of them were made in the heyday of BBC's one-off drama slot PLAY FOR TODAY and were as good as anything in the cinema.

The four dramas included are JUST ANOTHER SATURDAY (the best of the bunch, in which Jon Morrison plays a young lad leading an Orange march who suddenly sees the dark side of Scotland's sectarian problem - it also features an early dramatic performance by Billy Connolly); THE ELEPHANT'S GRAVEYARD, another excellent show in which Morrison is joined by Billy Connolly once more as they play two men dodging off work and talking about their lives; JUST A BOY'S GAME, a tale of Scottish gangsters and family ties featuring a superb performance by singer Frankie Miller; and the only one of the bunch that isn't from PLAY FOR TODAY, the more recent DOWN AMONG THE BIG BOYS (once more featuring Connolly) which tells of a promising young policeman marrying the daughter of a gangster. It's slightly more lightweight than the rest but still enjoyable.

On the one hand, watching these dramas make you despair about modern TV. Once upon a time a guy from the shipyards with no experience could end up writing some of the BBC's most acclaimed dramas; now the only way he'd get such acclaim is if he was ballroom dancing or some such pish.

On the other hand though, at least we had a time when television drama, particularly of the regional variety, was this strong. The films included are all terrific stuff and a bonus disc also includes interviews with Morrison and McDougall himself. It's full of interesting information, including the revelation that the main marching action in the brilliant JUST ANOTHER SATURDAY had to be filmed in Edinburgh (pretending to be Glasgow) because the sectarian problem in the west was so bad that they weren't allowed to film it in Glasgow.

At least since it took me so long to tell you about this release you should be able to get it really cheap in a sale now. Just be sure and do pick it up.

Bill Douglas (and St Andrew)

I feel rather ashamed that St Andrew's Day has come and gone (it was the 30th of November) and I failed to celebrate it (in blog form at least) by coming up with anything related to Scottish films. I'd like to say however that for once it wasn't my laziness - my internet connection has been down for the last several days. Honest.

With that in mind, I thought at the very least I could use this opportunity to point out that just recently (well, several months ago) the British Film Institute released on DVD the greatest Scottish film(s) ever made, in the form of THE BILL DOUGLAS TRILOGY.

Sadly these three represent three quarters of Douglas's entire feature-length film output, so we can only wonder at what might have been under different circumstances. That said however, the films that we do have are marvellous.

The three autobiographical films (of which the first, MY CHILDHOOD, is probably the best) tell of a young boy growing up after World War II in a poverty-ridden Scottish mining village (Newcraighall, just outside Edinburgh, if you're interested) as he gradually approaches adulthood.

The films are not just memorable for their starkly honest portrait of Scottish post-war poverty (after all, Scottish cinema specialises in tales of poverty and misery) but for being the most beautifully made Scottish films too. Being shot on grainy old black and white 16mm helps the films no end - MY CHILDHOOD in particular, despite being made in the 70s, truly feels like the 1940s) - but Douglas somehow still makes the barren wasteland of post-war Scotland look magical. Whether it's the rundown housing or the wide-open fields nearby, every shot is visual perfection.

The other films in the trilogy (MY AIN FOLK and MY WAY HOME) don't have quite the same gritty look about them but nevertheless encompass everything that was great about the first two films. If there's any flaw at all, it's that MY WAY HOME perhaps loses something by following the young lad's exploits abroad, which don't seem to have the same punch as the tales of his depressing Edinburgh childhood.

I should also single out one other aspect of the films that really boost the authenticity too, and this concerns the casting. While the actors are all terrific, what really stands out is the way the speak. I'm not just talking about what they say and how they say it (although that is true to life too) but also the accents.

The accents might seem like a small detail to focus on but I can't emphasise enough just how rare something like this is. Under normal circumstances Scottish films like this would be made up of a combination of people with BBC Scottish accents, people trying to sound like they're really working class Scots, and people who have west-coast accents. None of that here - every accent in the film is total authentic, unmistakably the voices you would expect to hear in a working class town in the east of Scotland.

Describing the accents perhaps could be a but misleading here mind you, as it gives the impression that there's a lot of talking. There's not - one of the most striking things about these films, particularly MY CHILDHOOD, is how little dialogue there is. That only adds to the poetic, art-house style of the films and really makes them stand out further against the pack.

These films are the most beautiful, lyrical films in the history of Scottish film (only Lynne Ramsay and Richard Jobson have really tried anything approaching this) and the BFI's DVD release is a must-own item, whether you're Scottish or not.