Richard Jenkins

REVIEW: The Shape of Water (2017)

In a top-secret research facility in 1960s Baltimore, a lonely cleaner named Elisa (Sally Hawkins) befriends a mysterious amphibious creature (Doug Jones) who is being terrorised by government agent Strickland (Michael Shannon).

The Shape of Water has a magical quality to it. The setting and particularly the music, gives it almost a golden age of Hollywood feel. Especially as the story is almost a classic story of love, friendship and good trying to triumph over evil. It’s almost like a fairy-tale and the way the film is bookended by some narration definitely adds to that feeling.

All the performances in The Shape of Water are great. Sally Hawkins does a brilliant job at conveying Elisa’s thoughts and feelings without ever saying a word. You believe in the connection she’s forming with this creature and seeing the two of the bond is lovely. Michael Shannon’s Strickland is a menacing presence from the first moment he appears. Every time he’s on screen your eyes are on him as he’s like a coiled spring ready to explode at any moment.

The Shape of Water is a bit tonally uneven. At its centre is a sweet story but then there’s sudden bouts of blood and violence – most of which are courtesy of Strickland. It’s also got some surprising moments of humour, a good number of them were from Elisa’s neighbour Giles (Richard Jenkins) who’s friendship with Elisa is lovely.

The Shape of Water is one of those films where I appreciated it more than I liked it. While for many it is one of their favourite films of the year, for me it was a lovely film with a lot of heart, but I don’t think it will stick with me for very long. 3/5.

REVIEW: The Core (2003)

the core elenasquareeyesWhen the Earth’s core stops spinning, the only way to save the planet is for a team to drill down to the core and set it spinning again.

The Core starts with an ominous scene and from there the pace never really lets up. You’re introduced to our heroes and they figure out how to save the world with a ridiculous and dangerous plan. The action and special effects are pretty good, though some haven’t stood the test of time, the destruction of the Golden Gate Bridge is certainly memorable.

The Core has all the usual characters seen in disaster films. The team sent to jumpstart the Earth are comprised of the seasoned pilot (Bruce Greenwood), the young protégé who seems unbeatable (Hilary Swank), the nice guy scientist (Aaron Eckhart), the Government scientist who you’re not sure if you can trust (Stanley Tucci), the mad scientist who was once betrayed by someone else in the team (Delroy Lindo) and the nice guy scientists best friend (Tchéky Karyo). Back on top of the Earth you have the helpful hacker (DJ Qualls) and the General who doesn’t like to be told he’s wrong (Richard Jenkins). They might be what we’re used to seeing but one thing in The Core’s favour is that a lot of these characters have good chemistry and bounce off each other really well. Quite often you find yourself caring about them which often leads to heartache considering the film’s genre.

Besides the cheesy moments, The Core’s main problem is that it ends up being quite formulaic – there’s a problem, the crew have to figure it out, they fix it, someone may or may not die, and repeat. That being said, often you do actually feel something when one of the team ends up dead, there’s self-sacrificing moments and unlucky accidents and they both add drama to the film.

The Core isn’t necessarily a good film, but it is quite fun most of the time and has all the usual tropes for a disaster film. 3/5.