Displaying items by tag: Famke Janssen

LOCKED IN

UK, 2023, 96 minutes, Colour.

Famke Janssen, Rose Williams, Alex Hassell, Finn Cole, Anna Friel.

Directed by Nour Wazzi.

This is something of a pastime movie, some audiences enjoying it is a psychological thriller, others very critical and dismissing it.

The screenplay is by Rowan Joffe (Brighton Rock).

This is a British production, a mansion, a sinister witch=like figure, an orphan seeming-heroine, a doctor. The title refers to a patient in hospital, Katherine, played by Famke Janssen, the matriarch of the mansion, coming out of coma, unable to communicate except by blinking, eventually indicating to the sympathetic nurse, Anna Friel, that she is the victim of a murder attempt. Visiting the hospital is Lena, Rose Williams, adopted daughter of Katherine.

Lena tells her story to the nurse, not always the truth. The action of the film moves back to Lena’s childhood in the situation at the mansion, Katherine and her stepson, always ill, and owning the mansion on the death of his father. The action also moves back three years to the wedding between the two young people and the further complications. Also in the action is the local GP, Dr Lawrence, who supervises the medication for the young epileptic.

As the plot develops, it seems moving towards a straightforward solution to the murder attempt – but, then there are so many twists, changing emotions, seeming betrayals, that it is difficult to know the authentic feelings of each of the three central characters. Some audiences enjoy trying to work this out – others gave up on it.

1. The title, Katherine and her injuries, coma, physical and psychological condition? Main characters locked in the mansion? Jamie locked into his epileptic condition, staying in the mansion?
2. The British thriller, psychological? Touch of the Gothic? Memories of Rebecca?
3. The mansion, the grounds, the interiors, the river and the island, the hospital? The musical score
4. The opening, Nurse Nicky, focus on her face and eyes, her interrogating Katherine, getting her to identify letters? Katherine, recovering from coma, her injuries, eye shut, fixed eye, linking? Returning to this sequence at the end?
5. The screenplay, the present, going back 30 years, going back three years, the dramatic interplay of the time eras?
6. Lena, at the hospital, with Nicky, concerns, fears, narrating the story?
7. 13 years earlier, the situation, Katherine and Lena’s mother, friends, falling out, the mother’s death, Katherine becoming surrogate mother, her husband and his death, stepmother to Jamie? The past career, wanting a comeback, dressing up and going out, socialising?
8. The issue of the inheritance, Jamie owning the house, Katherine in charge but not in charge, Lena and her age, devotion to Katherine, devotion to Jamie? His health, epileptic fits? And his ability to pretend to have fits?
9. The flashback to 3 years earlier, the surprise of Jamie and Lena marrying, Katherine hovering like the traditional wicked witch, her speeches about the house, toasting, Jamie’s reaction, the dancing, his having a fit, carried out?
10. The presence of Dr Lawrence, the prescriptions for Jamie, the discussions about the prescriptions? At the wedding? Jamie in the hospital, the encounter with Nurse Nicky and her criticisms, his reaction?
11. Lena, the isolation, her journal, her thought about Katherine, the birthday sequence, the cake, Katherine’s reaction? Dr Lawrence’s presence? Lena and the attraction, her seduction, the sexual encounters? Indication of being willing to murder, Jamie and his wanting to have a picnic on the island, Dr Lawrence and his plan, going past the woodcutters, capsising the boat, dragging Jamie down? The police and satisfactory explanations?
12. Lena and visits to the hospital, Katherine’s gradual recovery, the indication of murder?
13. The seeming straightforwardness of the plot, the murder of Jamie, the murder of Katherine, the selling of the house, the money? Yet Lena and her protectiveness towards Jamie, the impact of his death, in the fascination with Dr Lawrence the future, her reactions to Katherine?
14. The even further twists, audiences puzzled about Dr Lawrence, with Katherine, the seeming plan, with Lena, seeming double betrayals, the pursuit of Lena, Katherine saving her, not shooting, Dr Lawrence driving and hitting Katherine? The plan to take Katherine from the hospital, bring her home, the suggestion of poison?
15. The setup, Katherine and her blinking, communicating with Lena, Dr Lawrence preparing the medication, Lena and decisions, injecting Dr Lawrence, stabbing Dr Lawrence, Nurse Nicky and her concern, the arrival of the police?
16. The future, Lena owning the house because of Jamie’s death, with Katherine…?

BOY KILLS WORLD

US, 2023, 111 minutes, Colour.

Bill  Skarsgaard, Jessica Rothe, Michelle Dockery, Brett Gelman, Isaiah Mustafa, Yayan Ruhian, Quinn Copeland, Sharlto Copley, Famke Janssen. Voice: H.Jon Benjamin.

Directed by Moritz Mohr.

It is probably best to give an alert immediately. This is an action fantasy but at times it is a wallow in what a clockwork Orange calls "a bit of the ultra-violence," which can best be defined as excessive or even over the top levels of brutality – Alex and his droogs would certainly enjoy it.

This is a highly macho show, not much female interest until the finale, but the filmmakers seem to have a younger audience in mind, a macho junior kind of entertainment.

Throughout the film, with its totalitarian futuristic city, its purge, this time called “The Culling”, with its initial reminders of The Hunger Games, and, in the latter part, a television musical special parallel with the gladiatorial combats of The Hunger Games, there were constant reminders of Graphic Novels, the panels of cartoon action, the dialogue in the bubble of the cartoon panel. Which means, of course, that it is not meant to be taken as realistic in any way. It is a fantasy.

Then, the final credits are exactly that, a whole range of cartoon characters and action, of graphic novel comic panels, the instant action, the cartoon-style dialogue, the stylised impact.

The overall plot is basically interesting, an explanation of the domination of the leader, Hilda Van Der Koy (Famke Janssen) the ruthlessness of The Culling, the execution of a very nice family, the survival of the boy (Bill Skarsgaard, Pennywise in the It movies), his being trained by a shaman in the jungle, lots of episodes of martial arts, combat, motivation to have his revenge on Hilda Van Der Koy. The boy is deaf but there is an inner gruffly aggressive voice, and regular appearances of his executed little sister, a kind of Anama figure trying to control his passionately aggressive Animus.

In fact, the action gets very quickly into the attack, and here is the wallow in the ultraviolence, combats, fights, deaths galore. There are also some nasty characters, Sharlto Copley as Glenn, a clownish spokesman on behalf of the regime, violently ruthless, but then we see his even more ruthless wife, in control of the state, Melanie Van Der Koy, Michelle Dockery a long way from Lady Mary at Downton Abbey. But, the boy finds two allies who are able to join him in the combats, rescue him when captured, lead to the final confrontation.

And, it takes place in the staging of a television special, song and dance, vast sets, studio audience (definitely reminding us of The Hunger Games) but the victims of the culling on stage and being hunted down and killed ruthlessly. But, when the boy and his associates go into action, the villains being hunted down and killed even more ruthlessly.

Perhaps a word that needs to be introduced into reviews of this kind of action show is “slaughter”.

However, interest is certainly raised when there is quite an unexpected twist at the end, dramatic.

The office of classification has given Boy Kills World an MA certificate, and references blood and gore.