Noah (2014, dir. Darren Aronofsky) ***/****

In Darren Aronofsky’s new film “Noah”, certain liberties are taken from its source material.  There are giant beings made of stone, “The Watchers”, who are put to use in a variety of ways, to make the story more exciting and to explain certain things, such as how Noah was actually able to construct the huge ark itself.  After all, this is Hollywood, where a mere retelling of the story of Noah and his ark wouldn’t be enough to entertain the average movie-goer.  Liberties are taken and new things are added to the Old Testament story that will both heighten the entertainment level and piss off a lot of devout Bible-thumpers. 

Other things are added to the old story as well.  Noah’s Grandfather is added, played beatifically by Anthony Hopkins.  He is a wise old man who lives in a mountain cave and imparts valuable advice to Noah (Russell Crowe), his wife (Jennifer Connelly) and children as well as possessing the gift of healing.  Emma Watson plays a girl who they discover, partially alive in an area strewn with the dead who Noah takes in and raise as one of his own.  Eventually she will become the wife of one of Noah’s sons, though she is barren as the result of her injuries from the aforementioned discovery site. 

In a prelude at the beginning of the film we are shown the lineage that has descended from the original humans, Adam and Eve.  Of their children, Cain murders Abel, as we know.  Their third son, Seth is just and good as are all his descendants.  Cain’s descendants are evil and treacherous.  These two lines populate the earth, Noah being a descendant of the good Seth.  The inevitable flood comes to rid the earth of all the nasty inhabits who have spawned from Cain.

There are scenes which are enjoyable and fun to watch.  The raising of the ark, the coming of the various species of animals, and the flood itself are handled masterfully by director Aronofsky. 

Although there are amped-up special effects and unnecessary character and story additions, I found this film entertaining and highly watchable.

Only God Forgives (2013, dir. Nicolas Winding Refn) ****/****

“Only God Forgives” comes from the imagination of Nicolas Winding Refn, the mastermind of 2011’s “Drive” a violent, stylistic film that delves into the dark side of mankind’s consciousness and his violent tendencies.  “Only God Forgives” has similar themes and preoccupations in its telling of a man (Ryan Gosling) set on avenging the murder of his brother.  It takes place in Bangkok.  The brother who is murdered happens to have murdered a prostitute.  When the police show up to the scene of the crime, the viewers expectations are thwarted as it will be many times throughout this world of crime and revenge.  The head cop is a disturbed man whose actions throughout this film are questionable given his occupation and unpredictable.  

Gosling’s character’s mother (Kristin Scott Thomas) enters the picture and right from her entrance we are shown the explosive rage and sociopathic criminality that characterizes this family.  She wants revenge for the murder of her first-born son and she will stop at nothing to see it through.

This film is stylistically brilliant.  Everything from the music, the lighting, the cinematography, and the acting contribute to its transcendent nature.  It is as violent as “Drive” and there is an element of an Oedipus complex underpinning Gosling’s character, his relationship to his mother, the family’s history, and actions in this film.

The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014, dir. Wes Anderson) ****/****

Wes Anderson has long been known to possess an imaginative vision.  His visual motifs, intricate mise-en-scene and inventive use of inter-titles recall a number of French New Wave films to which he is obviously indebted.  The Grand Budapest Hotel, his latest opus, is no exception to this rule.  From the get-go, the viewer is bathed in rich compositions, visually alluring shots and camera set-ups that have been his trademark since his debut with Bottle Rocket.

The film stars Ralph Fiennes as M. Gustave, a concierge of the title hotel who gets into a series of adventures accompanied by his newly hired lobby boy named Zero.  There is an old heiress (Tilda Swinton), one of Gustave’s many elderly lovers, whose death under mysterious circumstances results in Gustave being accused of involvement in her murder.  There is a priceless painting that the heiress has bequeathed to Gustave.  The descendants of Swinton’s character are enraged by the last minute changes in the will of the recently deceased and wage war and vengeance against Gustave.  There are some chase scenes throughout this film which vaults the picture into levels of excitement that are unparalleled in recent Anderson films, and films in general.

The majority of the film takes place in the past, in a pre-World War II, fictitious setting that seems a hodge-podge of various European locales.  In the present-day portion of the film, a now much older Zero played by F. Murray Abraham recounts his adventures in the past to a writer (Jude Law).  This is a deftly told story by director Anderson and is one of his most accomplished films.  It’s a visual delight that requires repeated viewings to absorb all of the compelling eye-candy.