Review: Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Shine a Light, Son of Rambow, OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Another film from the Judd Apatow factory (he produces here) features the same formula, hefty doses of raunch and heart played by the same guys. What separates the Apatow written and directed from his produced is a sense of down home realism. Forgetting Sarah Marshall, while touching and funny at turns, never reaches the heights of Apatow's and Knocked Up and falls considerably short of the inspired antics of last summer's The 40 Year VirginSuperbad. Written and starring Jason Segal, some of the jokes here feel too staged, something that never afflicts the Apatow helmed entries. The biggest surprise of Marshall comes from Mila Kunis, who sheds off her That 70's Show garb and does a comedic 180, bravely moving from the safe and restrictive confines of network sitcoms into the more risqué R-rated comedy. A bust by no means, it is somewhat of a disappointment given the previous output from this crew but this is undoubtedly better than 90% of the comedies that will be released this year.


Shine a Light

Martin Scorsese is one of the few directors around the world that can do almost no wrong with critics and audiences alike and with Shine a Light, his collaborative concert film with The Rolling Stones, he succeeds again. The Stones are on top of their game here, a stunning revelation that a nearly 50-year-old band can still bring the heat and at times, could easily outplay any band in the world. The performance is loose and fun but never messy. In fact, on the contrary, as the band is tight and propulsive, moving from hit to fan favorite with ease and precision. Seen on IMAX, the film is a visual and aural rocker, expertly edited and shot. Prior to the concert, Scorsese enlisted some of the industry's finest DPs to act as cameraman and the results are entirely evident on the screen. Featuring the work of such luminaries as Robert Elswit (There Will Be Blood, Good Night and Good Luck, Syriana), Ellen Kuras (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, He Got Game, Bamboozled), Andrew Lesnie (The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, King Kong), Emmanuel Lubezki (Children of Men, The New World, Y Tu Mama Tambien) and John Toll (The Thin Red Line, Braveheart, The Last Samurai), Shine a Light spins, swirls and soars around. It may be the best shot concert film of all time. Combined with a searing performance from the band, Shine a Light is another Scorsese hit, if not another a classic.


Son of Rambow

At its best moments, Garth Jenning's second film seems to match the best of Gondry. Where it differentiates itself is in its inability to retain the sense of wonder and whimsy that Gondry so effortlessly presents. Son of Rambow, which tells the story of two boys, who after viewing a bootleg copy of First Blood, set off to make their own Rambo film, is an enjoyable yet ultimately slight film. It never quite reaches the heights of The Science of Sleep or even this year's Be Kind Rewind, two films that immediately come to mind while watching Rambow but still manages to keep its audiences entertained for its hour and forty minute run time. Bill Millner, in his debut performance, plays Will Proudfoot, one half of the filmmaking duo, and Millner is nothing short of spectacular. Without his heartfelt, humorous and intelligent performance, Rambow would greatly suffer. With it, the film is never dull or an outright disappointment. The film's finale is as uplifting and warm as one would imagine and hope for, leaving the audience with a pleasant taste in their mouths. While it may never inspire someone like First Blood does to the young boys, it certainly helps to bring back its audiences to the point where they recognized their own love of film, which for many of us, is a memory well worth reliving.


OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies

France's answer to James Bond is Hubert Bonisseur de La Bath a.k.a OSS 117, a bumbling mix of Inspector Closseau and Jason Bourne. In OSS 117: Cairo, Nest of Spies, OSS 117 is used to mixed results and while there are some moments of inspired satire and comedy, too often the film's jokes fall well short of their goal to fully succeed. OSS 117 is sent to Cairo to investigate the death of another OSS agent and from the get go, its obvious that while he may try, 007 is a world away. Wonderfully played by Jean Dujardin in a performance that single handedly saves the film, OSS 117 spends the next hour and forty minutes racing around the streets trying to determine the culprit behind the death of his friend. The comedic moments that work are tremendous, displaying a sharp understanding of the East/West dynamic as well as a keen sense of the genre in which it works. For fans of spy films, there is enough here to entertain. However, for the unconverted/newcomers to the genre, much of the film's sly comedy will be lost, leaving only a few sparkling moments of physical insanity to do the heavy lifting. Thankfully the film moves quickly and is never boring so there is certainly worse ways to spend the two hours but one can't help but be disappointed by the promise of certain scenes that never fully materializes, leaving an empty feeling at film's end.