Movie Review – Middle Age Fanclub

Film Review: ‘Jules’

A bit of an understated gem this one. ‘Jules’ tells the tale of pensioner Milton Robinson (Ben Kingsley) whose life changes overnight when a UFO crashes in his back garden.

Milton is a widowed 79-year-old living rattling around alone in his great big home. His daughter, a local vet, is worried about his mental health, suspecting that her dad is showing signs of early onset dementia. Meanwhile, Milton busies himself by attending the same local council meeting week after week after week and having his requests for more pedestrian crossings turned down. Luckily for him, two other pensioners make the same weekly pilgrimage and both might just be fighting for his attention.

Only when the aforementioned space ship crash lands in his back garden do things start looking up for Milton. He finds the injured alien and after a day or two manages to get it strong enough to enter his house. From that point on the two busy themselves watching daytime TV while Milton tries to figure out what to do for the best. But he’s getting nowhere fast. The local police put him down as some sort of crackpot and his daughter takes his plea for help with the alien as a sign that her dementia diagnosis is correct. But at least he has a cure for his loneliness now.

Things begin to move at pace when his two female admirers get involved with one naming the alien ‘Jules’. But Jules’ fate is nowhere near safe.

While Jules clearly needs to return to his home planet, government forces are working tirelessly in the background to find the alien and his craft, which they know has crashed to earth somewhere in Pennsylvania. Together these pensioners and their adopted alien must find a way to keep Jules hidden while also outwitting the agents that are hunting him down.

‘Jules’ is a really heart warming tale. The bond between Milton and Jules is an unusual one to say the least, but it helps the film deal with issues like ageing, loneliness and mental health quite beautifully. There’s a really subtle undercurrent of dry humour too, which is brought out brilliantly by some excellent performances.

‘Jules’ features a quite wonderful cast. Kingsley is fantastic as the curmudgeonly Milton and is aided and abetted brilliantly by Harriet Sansom Harris as Sandy and Jane Curtin as the feisty Joyce. There’s plenty of life left in these three old timers, that’s for sure, especially when it comes to keeping a lost alien safe!

As with any alien film, you have to suspend your disbelief a bit here. I mean, the fact that no one notices the loud shuddering smash of an alien craft crash landing has to be ignored for starters. But that said, there’s never a great deal of point in picking holes in a plot, is there?

With crusading pensioners, bungling federal agents, a mute alien and a whole host of dead cats, ‘Jules’ is definitely one to watch and it might just turn out to be the favourite film you never knew you needed! A quirky, funny and warm film that is guaranteed to at the very least raise a smile!

I give ‘Jules’…

Film Review: Sisu

They say that it’s always the quiet ones you’ve got to watch, don’t they? Well, there’s never been a truer word spoken when it comes to Finnish film Sisu. The film’s hero is indeed quiet and you can’t help but watch. It’s just a shame the bad guys didn’t seem to hear what ‘they’ said!

Directed by Jalmari Helander, Sisu is set in rural Finland at the back end of World War 2 where the Germans have adopted a somewhat scorched earth policy to their retreat. They’re defeated and almost broken, but not quite finished with all that Nazi stuff. Determined to leave their mark and inflict just a little bit more pain, they trundle along looking for trouble as they head towards their extraction point.

Meanwhile, not too far away an old miner has finally found gold in them there hills and bagging up the bounty from a rich seam, he’s setting off for town to presumably trade it all in for a big bag full of cash. It feels like it’s inevitable that he’s about to be the next victim of this rag tag band of super villains. But, when they meet things don’t quite go to plan for the bad guys and their tank. This is not just any old miner; this is the legendary Finnish commando, Aatami, nicknamed ‘Immortal’ by the last army to cross his path and who doesn’t take the attempts to steal his gold too lightly.

What follows is brutal, entertaining mayhem and at times is thoroughly hilarious. There’s violence aplenty, much of it unbelievable, some of it ridiculous, but all of it the kind that will keep your eyes firmly on screen. Think Tarantino, think Rambo, think John Wick and think Clint Eastwood’s man with no name from the spaghetti westerns and you’ve got a fair idea of what to expect from Sisu. A film not to be taken too seriously that will seriously entertain.

The film seems heavily influenced by Sergio Leone’s work and the spaghetti westerns like Django that followed. The location is bleak, the dialogue minimal and the violence ferocious and gory. And as far fetched as it gets – and it really stretches the imagination here – you’ll find yourself willing Aatami on. You may well be laughing uproariously at times, but he’s not. Nor is he saying much and yet such is Jorma Tommila’s portrayal of our good guy, especially when set against the almost cartoonish Nazis, that you find yourself desperate to see him killing them in evermore brutal and unbelievable ways!

If you don’t mind a bit of gore and your after a thoroughly entertaining film to watch then I’d totally recommend Sisu. A captivating watch that will make you wince as much as it’ll make you laugh and cheer. Suspend that sense of disbelief and I promise you won’t be disappointed!

I give Sisu…

Film Review: ‘Marcel The Shell with Shoes On’.

If someone was to recommend a film to you where the premise was that a man discovers a talking shell and makes a documentary about it, you would be forgiven for deciding that this wasn’t the film for you. Furthermore, no one would question you doubting that someone’s sanity. And yet, here we are…

The idea behind ‘Marcel the Shell with Shoes On’ is ludicrous to say the least. To be fair though, nobody’s telling us this is real life and there have always been ludicrous ideas in some of our most loved films. ET, Star Wars, The Hobbit…it’s a list that could go on and on. And it gets even sillier though when you realise that Marcel the shell lives in an Airbnb with his grandma…also a shell. That said, I can only write about the film in glowing terms and say that you have to see ‘Marcel…’!

Having moved into an Airbnb, documentary maker Dean stumbles across Marcel the shell, who of course already lives there. Being only an inch tall, however, he’s thus far survived without being discovered. Somehow, a friendship of sorts is formed and Marcel is quick to introduce the aforementioned grandma as well as Alan, his pet ball of lint.

The film documents Marcel’s life and the friendship between him and Dean. We learn that Marcel used to have a whole family living here, but following a break up of the people who were renting the house, the family had disappeared. Marcel’s only clue as to their whereabouts is a picture of the man’s car and suitcase. Marcel is sure that his family were bundled up into the suitcase.

It’s a ludicrous idea at first, but you can’t help but warm to Marcel, almost immediately. He looks cute, he sounds cute and as the film goes on we find out that he’s both funny and caring as well as being vulnerable, which I guess you might expect of a shell.

When Dean then uploads a video of Marcel to the internet in order to help him find his family, the results are exactly what you’d expect. Marcel goes viral and the world becomes obsessed with finding this talking shell…and his grandma. Luckily, Dean is very protective and careful about who he lets into this world and soon the hunt for Marcel’s family is quietly on.

‘Marcel the shell…’ is just a lovely film. The relationship between Marcel and Dean is a real feelgood thing and the film is done in such a way that it all seems perfectly natural and dare I say it, believable. At first, I found myself kind of scoffing at the whole thing, but before too long I was completely under its spell. I won’t spoil things with any more detail, but suffice to say there’s a lot to take in.

Laughs, sadness, happiness, internet fame; what more could you want from a film about a shell who lost his family? If you’re after a film that will invariably make you smile and take you away from the troubles and seriousness of modern life, then ‘Marcel the shell with shoes on’ could well be for you.

I give ‘Marcel the shell with shoes on’…

Film Review: ‘The Phantom of The Open’.

Golf is one of those sports and subjects that tends to polarise opinion, isn’t it? Many will quote the famous Mark Twain line about it being “a good walk spoiled”, but for every one of those there’s a fan who is simply addicted to the game. Wherever your opinion lies on golf though, I think you’ll enjoy the film.

The Phantom of the Open is a 2021 comedy drama starring Sir Mark Rylance. It tells the true life tale of Maurice Flitcroft, a crane driver from Cumbria whose attempts to enter the British Open back in 1976, caused much controversy amongst the golfing fraternity.

Watching the film I came to the opinion that Flitcroft was very much a modern day working class hero. Here was a man who despite having never picked up a club in his life, decided to dream big. Partly down to naivety and partly down to his desire to live a full life and follow his dreams, Flitcroft applied for the tournament, bought some knock off clubs and gear and began to practice.

But this film is not all about the golf. Maurice is simply a lovely man and a born optimist. He encourages his wife and sons to dream big too and helps them out in any way he can. What ensues is a touching tale of working class family life and love that teaches us that even when the chips are down, to keep on dreaming and keep on smiling. In many ways, the golf and Maurice’s pursuit of some kind of Open glory is a bit of a sideshow.

That said, watching Maurice innocently take on the establishment and stuffed shirts that seem to dominate golf even to this day is an absolute riot! Ticking the ‘Professional’ box on his entry form is just the start of the fun. When he actually takes to the course – having been turned away from his local course by the snobs that govern it – the hilarity hits like a whacking drive down the fairway, all the way to the green. Needless to say it doesn’t end well, but this only leads to Maurice continuing to stick it to ‘the man’ by attempting to play the tournament year upon year!

Mark Rylance is just superb as Flitcroft. I must admit, when I saw that he was doing the film, I was surprised to say the least. Maybe I was guilty of the same snobbery that the film tackles, but Rylance’s name screamed Shakespeare, rather than comedy tales of wayward amateur golfers. It turns out that I needn’t have worried as the subtlety of his portrayal of Watkins is just wonderful. Rylance nails it, portraying Maurice as honest, naïve and vulnerable, while also conveying his endless kindness and love for his family. Maurice is a character that you might just find yourself falling for, such is Rylance’s performance.

The rest of the cast are brilliant too. Sally Hawkins (The Shape of Water, Paddington) is fantastic as Flitcroft’s wife, encouraging his dreams however absurd they might seem. Elsewhere, Mark Lewis Jones plays Cliff, Watkins’s every so slightly dodgy but well meaning pal and Rhys Ifans is hilarious as Maurice’s nemesis, the interfering Keith Mackenzie, the chairman of the almost sacred St. Anrdews gold course.

Sitting down to watch I was just expecting a bit of a comedy. A few laughs along the way and probably a bit of hilarity as our working class hero takes on the establishment. In reality what I got was much, much more. This was a truly engaging study of a great British eccentric, as well as a enduring love story. The Watkins family live for each other and love and affection is never in short supply, making for a really touching piece of film. And there’s drama too, when things inevitably go wrong with Maurice’s dream.

As a true story, the film sends out a message. It’s not just a chance to watch this funny little man do things he’s not supposed to. The film teaches us that there’s nothing wrong in following your dreams and that it doesn’t matter what others might say or even how unattainable those dreams might seem; if you want it, then the only thing that’s stopping you from at least giving it a go, is you.

The Phantom of The Open is very funny and at times brilliantly dramatic. It’s much more than just a film about golf. A true underdog story this film will take you on a rocky ride from start to finish and you’ll be rooting for Maurice all the way. And if by the end, like me, you find that there’s something in your eye, then don’t be surprised.

I’d give ‘The Phantom of The Open’