Crisp Criticism - "Jason Bourne", "Lights Out", "Love & Friendship", "Sing Street"

by

Julien Faddoul

Jason Bourne **

The most dangerous former operative of the CIA is drawn out of hiding to uncover hidden truths about his past.

Some may find this lean and nonessential entry in the Bourne series to be formulaic, covering both style and story that we’ve experienced before. But it is none the worse of that, with Greengrass cementing his position as the superior taut actioner to others in Hollywood, utilizing his typical strobe-like editing and shaky camera to enrich rather than fluster.

d – Paul Greengrass

w – Paul Greengrass, Christopher Rouse   (Based on the Characters by Robert Ludlum)

ph – Barry Ackroyd

pd – Paul Kirby

m – John Powell, David Buckley

ed – Christopher Rouse

cos – Mark Bridges

p – Paul Greengrass, Matt Damon, Frank Marshall, Jeffrey M. Weiner, Ben Smith, Gregory Goodman

Cast: Matt Damon, Tommy Lee Jones, Alicia Vikander, Vincent Cassel, Julia Stiles, Riz Ahmed, Ato Essandoh, Scott Shepherd, Bill Camp, Vinzenz Kiefer, Stephen Kunken

Lights Out

When her little brother experiences the same events that once tested her sanity, a young women works to unlock the truth behind the terror.

Shrill and stupid horror film that exhausts all its interesting ideas within the first ten minutes.

d – David F. Sandberg

w – Eric Heisserer   (Based on the Short Film by David F. Sandberg)

ph – Marc Spicer

pd – Jennifer Spence

m – Benjamin Wallfisch

ed – Michel Aller, Kirk M. Morri

cos – Kristin M. Burke

p – Lawrence Gray, James Wan

Cast: Teresa Palmer, Maria Bello, Alicia Vela-Bailey, Gabriel Bateman, Emily Alyn Lind, Alexander DiPersia

Love & Friendship **

Lady Susan Vernon takes up temporary residence at her in-laws' estate and, while there, is determined to be a matchmaker for her daughter Frederica – and herself too, naturally.

An ideal matching of filmmaker and novelist accentuates the wit of both parties to create a pleasant inspection on conceitedness. It does lack the reflective rigor of its director’s previous films though.

wd – Whit Stillman   (Based on the Novella by Jane Austen)

ph – Richard Van Oosterhout

pd – Anna Rackard

m – Benjamin Esdraffo

ed – Sophie Corra

cos – Eimer Ni Mhaoldomhnaigh

p – Whit Stillman  

Cast: Kate Beckinsale, Chloë Sevigny, Xavier Samuel, Stephen Fry, Emma Greenwell, Justin Edwards, Tom Bennett, Morfydd Clark, Jemma Redgrave, James Fleet, Jenn Murray

Sing Street *

A boy growing up in Dublin during the 1980s escapes his strained family life by starting a band to impress the mysterious girl he likes.

The fourth whimsical film in a row by this director who can never expand from the clichéd setups and generic characters he anchors for himself. Many may find this kind of thing endearing, but I found it to be mostly hogwash. Good cast.

wd – John Carny

ph – Yaron Orbach

pd – Alan MacDonald

ed – Andrew Marcus, Julian Ulrichs

cos – Tiziana Corvisieri

p – Anthony Bregman, John Carney, Kevin Scott Frakes, Christian Grass, Martina Niland, Raj Brinder Sign, Paul Trijbits

Cast: Lucy Boynton, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Aidan Gillen, Jack Reynor, Kelly Thornton, Ferdia Walsh-Peelo