8A - Monday, April 15, 2013 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com E FILM REVIEW Underdog story warms hearts in'Sapphires FOCUS "Drive 2" 'Pines' lacks power Gosling dominates in overly ambitious tale of morality By AKSHAY SETH Daily B-Side Editor For the first two minutes of Derek Cianfrance's ("Blue Val- entine") "The Place Beyond the Pines," Luke Glanton B (Ryan Gos- ling, "Drive") The Place remains face- less. All we getB is an unidenti- the Pines fied hero mov- At State ing forward. We don't know Focus who he is, what he's about to do or why he's about to do it. For the first and only time in the film, the consequences are irrelevant. We move with Glanton, and there's a certain thrill in the motion being meaningless. As he pulls on a torn Metallica shirt, exhales a puff of cigarette smoke and dons his black motor- cycle helmet, his face finally becomes visible. He stares at the Globe of Death, his eyes shifting between nonchalance and the calm that comes with routine. Death is beckoning, but there are no responsibilities, and again, the consequences are irrelevant. The rest of the film is a differ- ent story. Drawn out, overdra- matic, yet unquestionably epic, an obvious theme ties together the 140-minute affair: penal- ties. Glanton, upon learning that he's the father of an illegitimate son with ex-lover Romina (Eva Mendes, "Girl in Progress"), quits his job as a motorcycle stuntman and resorts to robbing banks with new-found partner Robin (Ben Mendelsohn, "Ani- mal Kingdom"). But with criminality comes the dampening embrace of the law. A haphazard bank robbery is followed by a searing five-minute chase, and as the film introduces us to rookie officer Avery Cross (Bradley Cooper, "Silver Linings Playbook"), it begins its steady descent into mediocrity. As is visible in the excessive number of close-ups, faces take on a haunted look and seem gen- uinely affected by the impacts of what's unfolding around them, but Cianfrance squanders any moral weight he's able to develop by never really resolving his cli- max. It's as if someone throws a lit match at a canister full of flammable gas only for it to fizzle out before ever making contact. In short, nothing really hap- pens. To some degree, this can be expected from Cianfrance, who's known for leaving audiences in a state of uncertainty, which isn't always a bad thing. His previous film, "Blue Valentine," was a poi- gnant, sad commentary on life's cruel way of stifling romance - specifically~so because it chose to leave many of the questions it raised unanswered. In "Pines," Cianfrance tries hard to tie together the multiple themes guiding his sprawling, multi-generational narrative, but because it's so damn big, any attempt to wring meaning out of the story feels half-assed and unsatisfying. Of the many vaguely broached topics of dis- cussion, perhaps the most vex- ing is the clumsy approach taken when addressing the underly- ing impacts of fatherhood. What should be the ultimate repre- sentation of the ripples of our actions drifting into the future is just left hanging in the air, like an unnecessary formality. It's as if someone actually thought that having one of the characters say, "I guess he'll grow up without a father now" would be enough to tackle the whole daddy-problems dynamic. As the film jumps forward 15 years and reintroduces us to the sons of our two protagonists, the reverberations never really become apparent. Sure, both the kids are fucked up, but we're expected to assume the reasons why, and by making us do so, the script marginalizes the complex- ity of what led us there. Surprisingly, none of the per- formances ever come close to veering in the same direction (unless, of course, you count any of the female leads, who were written off, sidelined and for- gotten halfway through). Coo- per does his best to channel the erratic explosiveness that got him so much praise for "Silver Linings Playbook," but it's obvious that this film belongs to Gosling. His role will be compared to his work in "Drive," and in many contexts, the comparison is valid. The crucial difference that's so apparent in this movie is the dra- matic shift in character he's able to bring to the forefront when he discovershehassomeonedepend- ing on him. Gosling measures a cornered sense of excitement in his demeanor whenever he's close to his son - an excitement eerily mirrored in the moments before he realizes he won't pull off his last bank robbery. Eventually,it'sthissameuncer- tainty, a diffidence that comes hand-in-hand with responsibil- ity, that makes "The Place Beyond The Pines" a flawed but com- pelling movie. We're still mov- ing with it, but toward the end, there's no thrill in the motion being meaningless. By ADITI MISHRA Daily Arts Writer It's surprising that with this particular combination of plot and characters, "The Sapphires" isn't an animated Disney movie. B+ It belongs to the world of mov- The ies that's given Sapphires us "Mulan" and "Cinderella" - At the the world where Michigan unexpected, unrealistic Weinstein things can hap- pen, but it doesn't matter, because we're desperate for the characters to win and shove a metaphorical middle finger in the faces of their haters. Plot holes and cheesy dia- logues can go suck it; "The Sap- phires" is a real-life fairytale with which we can'thelp but fall inlove. That "real-life" aspect - the fact that this movie is based on a true story - is a large part of what makes the film so endearing. Writ- tenbyfirst-timeduoKeithThomp- son and Tony Briggs, the film is based on the story of an Australian Aboriginal four-girl group formed by Briggs's mother in 1968. The outfit consists of sisters Gail and Julie (Deborah Mailman and Jes- sica Mauboy of "Bran Nue Dae") and their cousins Cynthia and Kay (newcomers Miranda Tapsell and Shari Sebbens). Victims of racial prejudice in their hometown, the girls are determined to overcome the color of their skin and showcase their musical talents to the world. Dur- ing a singing contest at a local bar, the girls meet a drunk, Irish talent scout named Dave Lovelace (Chris O'Dowd, "Bridesmaids"). Julie convinces Dave to train the group for a job singing for the U.S. troops in Vietnam. Once they get the gig, Dave agrees to be their manager and th the tro their s it's ma of race In Wayn grasp that tail. T this st fairyta suppr they'r their risk w sing li Prince unlike heroes sic un hundr becau re girls shoot to fame among point in making their onscreen Dops almost overnight.While personas headstrong and loveable. uccess comesswift and easy, Blair must've scrounged the vast arred by underlying tensions expanse of Australia to handpick and war. these four musical gems. They his debut feature, director embody "The Sapphires" in every e Blair displays a remarkable way, and their soulful voices enter- of the themes and emotions tain the audiences even when sake an ideal movie cock- the plot falls flat and predictable. hey're also the reason why They're helped a lot by O'Dowd, ory plays out like a Disney who gives one of the most surpris- ale - its protagonists are ingly refreshing performances essed by race and gender, of the year as the group's clumsy, e determined to overcome messed-up and hilarious manager. shortcomings; they take a Who knew Kristen Wiig's adork- ith a job in a war zone; they able love interest from "Brides- ike angels; they find their maids" had a little bit of James Charmings in the most Brown in him? ly places and return home as "The Sapphires" benefits from s. "The Sapphires" is a clas- Blair and Briggs's combined expe- derdog story that we've seen rience with musical theater. They eds of time, but it stands out know when to throw the jokes, se it's made well. which songs to dispatch and when to employ war and prejudice as tearjerkers. Having adapted the Ultim ately, script from Briggs's play of the same name, the writers capitalize t's a Disney on their knowledge of the audi- ence's response to this story by fairytale. further emphasizing the hilarity and sensitivity of certain scenes. Though not a cinematic marvel, "The Sapphires" hits all the right d like every underdog story, notes at all the right times. Let's udience has an emotional face it - no matter how predict- in the characters' success. able it may be, a well made under- is front, Mailman, Mauboy, dog story like this one just never 11 and Sebbens don't disap- failsto tug on our heartstrings. 6 6 0 WEINSTEIN "Which one is Cinderella?" i Ane the a stake On th Tapse I LAST CHANCE TO USE YOUR EDUCATIONAL DISCOUNT! 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