"Infamous". A Review Of The 2006 Movie On DVD.

"…Infamy! Infamy! They've All Got It In For Me!"

Surely an Oscar was due to TOBY JONES for his central performance in "Infamous"? And Daniel Craig too - menacing, sexy, intoxicating - you can see why this guy will pull off the lethal double-whammy - Bond for the boys – but films like "Defiance", "The Mother" and "Flashbacks Of A Fool" for challenging roles and acting chops.

The story begins with much of the cast narrating their thoughts on Truman Capote via interview to the camera. They discuss with dispassion this odd little American writer who was also a world-class raconteur and smoozer. Particularly good are Juliet Stevenson as the socialite and Sandra Bullock as Piper Laurie (author of "To Kill A Mockingbird").

The story begins with Truman seeing a story in a newspaper about a family wiped out in small town America. He is drawn to it without really knowing why. He and Bullock travel to the town, but are stumped by paperwork. The town sheriff (downplayed subtly and beautifully by Jeff Daniels) won't play ball and allow either access to anything to do with the case. So Truman does what he does best - he wheedles his way into the sheriff's family and their affections with his charm and tales of famous folks (a trick he uses in the interviews in jail). Then the real murderers get caught and Truman gets stuck in on both of them knowing that these scumbags want their sordid stories told. And on it goes...

The support cast is uniformly superb too – Sigourney Weaver, Hope Davis, Isabella Rossellini and Gwyneth Paltrow – all actresses of real talent and power.

"Infamous" made me like a man who some would say was superfluous to Humanity's requirements - a person who tested your patience - who was outside the norm - but used his wit, intelligence and verbal cunning to rise above the ridicule he so often evoked.

"Infamous" is a thought-provoking story about a complex, clever, irritating, pretentious and ultimately fascinating person - a tale added to by the central performance - and not dominated by it (as Phillip Seymour Hoffman did in the more lauded "Capote" movie).

I thought it was a fantastic film – and with a great cast delivering on all fronts.

Highly recommended (and roll on the BLU RAY reissue).

"How To Lose Friends And Alieniate People". A Review of the 2009 Film on BLU RAY.

“…show them a film like this…”

It's hard to imagine a movie that tests your patience more than "How To Lose Friends & Alienate People" does. It's supposed to be a comedy, but you spend most of the time wincing instead of enjoying.

My wife read Toby Jones’ book and loved it - laughed a great deal – and even when he was being a complete prick, it was at least entertaining. But the film version falls flat on its face – time after time after time. And worse – it feels like it actually admires the shallow and cruel celebrity culture it’s supposed to be pillorying. You left wondering why quality people like Jeff Bridges, Gillian Anderson and Kirsten Dunst are in this dog.

Pegg doesn’t help either. He’s not handsome enough to keep women interested and too irritating for men to empathise with or admire. Had it been James McAvoy or Benjamin Chaplin in the lead role, it might have worked – they have the British charm and acting chops to pull off this kind of stunt.

But worse are the alterations to Jones’ story - the set pieces that were so funny in the book are radically changed to supposedly big up the humour, but they either don’t work, strain all believability or you’ve seen them done before - but better. Mostly – the movie just isn't that funny.

Times Square and Manhattan look beautiful on Blu Ray as our hapless hero passes them by in his big yellow taxi – as does Megan Fox in several skimpy outfits – but the film is so bad that any gain is quickly lost as you reach for the stop button and wished you’d bought/hired something else.

A real shame that it hadn’t the balls or conviction of the book - to tell it was – personal warts and all…

One to avoid I’m afraid.