Matt Damon returns to Jason Bourne
April 21, 2016
Paul Greengrass and Matt Damon reunite for another installment of Jason Bourne in the first trailer out today. Joined by franchise vet Julia Stiles and Alicia Vikander, the film is in theaters July 29.
Jason Bourne
Man on a Planet
October 6, 2015
The Martian (2015).
D: Ridley Scott. DP: Dariusz Wolski. W: Drew Goddard (Based on Andy Weir’s novel of the same name). Starring: Matt Damon/Jessica Chastain/Chiwetel Ejiofer/Jeff Daniels/Kristen Wiig/Kate Mara/Sebastian Stan/Michael Peña/Aksel Henne/Mackenzie Davis/Donald Glover/Sean Bean.
Ridley Scott’s newest venture has sky rocketed in the box office over the weekend. The Martian will probably put Scott back on the sci-fi map, which is a credit to its source material and its star, Matt Damon. Even at nearly forty-five, Damon’s boyish charm and Jason Bourne determination make him an enjoyable force on screen.
I skipped out on Scott’s directorial effort Exodus: Gods and Kings last year and feel confident in that decision. Yet I did make time to see 2012’s Prometheus and even 2010’s Robin Hood. For me Prometheus was a mixed bag, but the lore of the Alien franchise was not something I was deeply connected to. Here in The Martian Scott is free from any baggage and seems to have a clearer hold on the story he wants to tell.
Based on Andy Weir’s initially self-published novel, The Martian is the story of astronaut and botanist Mark Watney (Damon) who is stranded on Mars following an injury during an emergency planet evacuation with his fellow crew-members. Thought to be dead, the crew starts their return home and he wakes up to the daunting task of feeding himself until the next Mars crew arrives in four years. Back on earth NASA eventually figures out Watney is alive and how to communicate with him and the rescue mission plans begin. The novel is a science heavy survival story with loads of humor that thankfully makes it into the film.
A difficult adaptation, Drew Goddard’s script does well in trying to balance Watney’s computer diary with the real rescue plan at home. Goddard previously adapted World War Z for the screen and co-wrote with Joss Whedon the fabulous Cabin in the Woods. Goddard’s script cannot match the wit of the novel, but that is simply because we cannot have a two hour film of just Damon making jokes. The best stick around, but the conventionality or studio glossing as I see it comes in back on earth, especially in a silly coda ending. The momentum is lost with Dr. Kapoor (Chiwetel Ejiofer) and a lot of the tension between the higher ups is diluted to humor and actor Sean Bean being able to say the Lord of the Rings joke from the book. Same can be said about the Mars crew, they aren’t given a chance to shine really, acting more as a catalyst for Watney’s escape possibilities.
The Martian however overcomes this with a visual palette that reiterates why mankind is so obsessed with space travel. Mars and Watney’s gadgets are a great backdrop for Damon’s exploration into how to really survive on the planet. Ultimately that is the joy of the film and the book. To see this character really figure out all the technology and science he needs to try to make it home. The Martian will surely continue to do well and makes me hopeful that Scott’s next movie might be even better.
Don’t Get Up During It. Don’t Miss Out.
September 15, 2011
Contagion (2011).
D/DP: Steven Soderberg. W: Scott Z. Burns. Starring: Laurence Fishburne/Kate Winslet/Matt Damon/Gwyneth Paltrow/Jude Law/Marion Cotillard/Jennifer Ehle/Demetri Martin/Elliot Gould/Bryan Cranston/John Hawkes/Anna Jacoby-Heron.
And so the fall film season begins. For those of us who braved the summers ups and downs, it is now time to gorge ourselves on the films that have been hoarded until the fall for award season. This season begins with Contagion, helmed by Steven Soderberg, who not only directed the film, but also acted as the director of photography. This is incredibly significant for this film as it allows such a synthesis between image and story. And although the film sports an impressive cast, the cast is especially secondary to the construct and visuals Soderberg creates.
His film is organized by day as an outbreak of a highly infectious disease (it is transmitted by touch) wrecks havoc in our modern world. As the American Center for Disease Control battles politics, scientists battle deconstructing the disease and coming up with an antidote, journalists tackled the information highway and how people are being helped and, of course on the ground, relief effort is being organized. Clearly there is a lot to be balanced. Yet, Soderberg never allows the film to run away with him or become sentimental. He keeps everything crisp, clean and compartmentalized in his story. There is not some grand cute way that every one is connected. Rather the audience is drawn into the realism of the disease, its ease at claiming life, and how fast reality changes. Certain images still haunt me, the looting of stores will remind some of Katrina (and maybe the recent riots in London) and the mass graves of bodies hearkens back to many a famous genocides of history. It is these images, pacing, and the distance of the camera from it’s actors at key moments that truly makes the film work.
Contagion ultimately works because it’s topical and has a clear story to tell. However, certain details are only explained on a debriefing after the film has concluded. As an audience member you must rack your brain to figure out where certain story lines went or why they were abandoned. Unfortunately, this wins over any true memory of an important performance. Matt Damon’s new thicker dad look works well here as the first man to experience the tragedy of the disease’s power. Gwyneth Paltrow, who plays his wife, convincingly dies in the beginning of the film and that moment is probably the most memorable of all. Everyone else does their best, but Contagion is ultimately not about them, but rather how they fit into the story of the epidemic.