Ace's High: Review of Molly's Game

Molly's Game

Director: Aaron Sorkin

By Alex Watson

Aaron Sorkin's first time behind the lens is certainly an entertaining one. Molly's Game has plenty of visual and narrative trickery to make it a slick and engaging drama. Although Sorkin shows promise, this movie doesn't quite have the winning hand needed. There is great tension and intrigue in the gambling world that Molly Bloom immersed herself in and a typically strong Jessica Chastain gives this tale a boost.

Molly Bloom (Jessica Chastain) is a former skier who has recently moved to Los Angeles. Quickly she finds a job working for a douchey Hollywood executive who asks her to organize a weekly poker night. Immediately she discovers a knack for running game night's and soon she attains a big celebrity clientele. However, her ascent to becoming a 'poker princess' will lead to her eventually crossing into illegal territory.

Molly's Game is a movie that clearly respects and admires its subject. In a breathless and enrapturing opening, we meet Molly as a member of the U.S Ski Team attempting to qualify for the 2002 Salt Lake Olympics. When she is injured, she has to rethink her career path and this is what leads her towards the poker world. Bloom soon emerges as a contender with both the savvy and smarts to build an empire. At first, she lives by a tight moral code as she refuses to accept payment and stays away from gambling herself. The early heyday is where the movie is at its strongest and Sorkin builds a great interest in not only how the game functions but the methods Molly uses to stay ahead. The movie moves back and forth between past and present to when Molly is being charged for her alleged involvement with the Russian mafia. Attorney Charlie Jaffrey (Idris Elba) is now faced with a near-impossible task of keeping her out of prison.

To keep her out of the big house, Molly must reveal what she knows to the US government. Keeping her cards close, she refuses to fold under pressure. This leads to verbal jousting between her and Charlie as her attorney mentally digests her decision to keep silent. There are some interesting aspects to Molly's backstory such as her fractured relationship with her psychologist father (An underused Kevin Costner). Her rise in the gambling world is what keeps this movie at the table and although she becomes vastly wealthy, she often rubs others the wrong way. Falling foul of high rolling celebrity Player X (Michael Cera) forces her to relocate to New York which is where her downfall begins. The problem that Sorkin faces midway is sustaining interesting and upping the already high stakes. Unfortunately, despite some unpredictable storytelling, this movie is unable to lift itself to where it needs to be.

The third act of Molly's Game is where the game beings to fold. Sorkin is keen to point out that Molly is very much a victim of having her success abused by wealthy men. What Molly Bloom achieved is nothing short of remarkable, but Sorkin seems to be unclear in what sort of reaction he wants from his audience? Because of this indecision, the wanted fireworks are never released during the film's finale. The scenes between Molly and Charlie are often enthralling but seem to lack a special something to make them memorable. Sorkin's movie desperately wants to be a classic poker movie and so far, it is definitely the best modern movie about playing cards. As much as we want it to be an award's contender it cannot bluff like a pro.

Jessica Chastain proves she is one of the Hollywood's elite talents with yet another powerhouse turn. As Molly Bloom, she is strong, smart and has plenty of moxie to boot. Showing this character as one weary from her time riding high, Chastain peals away the layers of this character to reveal who deep her conflict runs. Already an award's favourite, you can expect Chastain's name to appear constantly come Oscar time. Idris Elba, unfortunately, is stuck in a less weighty role as Charlie. Reduced to just shouting constantly, his presence does inspire some great scenes with Chastain. Sadly, this character is drastically underwritten so any potential effects are lost.

Molly's Game shows that Aaron Sorkin can walk the walk behind the lens as well as on paper. With time, our favourite writer could be something special!

The Innovator: Review of Steve Jobs

Steve Jobs

Director: Danny Boyle

By Alex Watson

Although it lacks the needed back story about the rise of one of this centuries greatest innovators, Steve Jobs is still a fine picture by Danny Boyle. Aided by a typical talkative Aaron Sorkin script, events play out like more of a three act play than a cinematic piece. Jobs is not made out as likable by any means but his dedication and ambition to his craft is always admirable. His relationship with those around him however, gives his life a more strained feel.

Examining three very significant events in the life of Steve Jobs (Michael Fassbender) such as the release of the ill-fated first Apple Macintosh which would lead to his dismissal. Through these moments we witness the fiery determination and the towering ego which although brought him worldwide admiration, also alienated him from those closest to him. 

Steve Jobs gives us a breathless opening inning where the clock counts down to the first launch of the Apple Mac in 1984. Jobs is fiercely determined to make his beloved machine speak 'Hello' to its audience. On display in this sequence is a complex array of emotions as Jobs berates, charms and threatens his 'Work Wife' Joanna Hoffman (A terrific Kate Winslet) and engineer Andy Hertzfeld (Michael Stuhlbarg). In this sequence we also gain a window into his human side and more importantly, his stubbornness. Jobs refuses to accept that his daughter Lisa is his child even though it has been proven. Her mother Chrisann (Katherine Waterston) cannot fathom the reason for this rejection and Jobs clings to the same algorithm that 28% of population could be the father. 

Danny Boyle doesn't set out to make Jobs any kind of Martyr figure and in truth he is both hero and villain combined. Despite warnings from Joanna such as “If you keep on alienating people for no reason, there will be no one left to say ‘Hello!’Jobs' ego makes him pay the greatest price. After he irreparably strains his relationship with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak (Seth Rogan) and CEO John Sculley (Jeff Daniels) due the failure of the Mac and his refusal to acknowledge the success of the Apple II- he is inevitably forced out. Rather painting this as a revenge or redemption piece, Boyle instead focus on the man himself. Through this he lifts the lid and reveals the self-doubt that Jobs feels within himself, perhaps brought on by his adoption as a child. 

For all its merits, it does feel disappointing that Steve Jobs only focuses on the early years and not the breakthrough products such as the iPad. We are only briefly given windows into the early life of Jobs which although provided momentary glimpses of a far different man is not nearly enough. Boyle focuses on the technical innovation that made this man an almost god like figure to the people who brought products. Jobs believed that computers should almost be as a friendly as people themselves and his perfectionism that angered colleagues was because he believed something . There are subtle hints towards the future products that would cement the Apple name, such as his preference for all rectangle corners be rounded. In the end, Boyle does a great job of making a difficult persona into something fascinating. 

As the man himself, Michael Fassbender proves the perfect jobs as the Apple impresario. Effectively channeling his insecurities with himself along with his sophistry, Fassbender holds the movies centre with such force that eclipses all others. By far one of the best leading men this year, this could be movie another Oscar nod coming right up. Kate Winslet refuses to get upstaged by Fassbender and rings in her own fine turn as the dry humoured Hoffman. In a dowdy and more low key performance, Katherine Waterston wins the most sympathy as Chrisann Brennan, a woman struggling to raise the very daughter that Jobs frequently rejects. 

Steve Jobs might not be a movie for everyone to appreciate, but the sheer power of its central performance lights up the picture. David Fincher may have rejected the chance to bring Jobs to the screen, but Danny Boyle has proven to the perfect man to do so.

10 Great Opening Sequences

Children of Men

Alfonso Cuaron's opener to his 2007 Sci-fi masterpiece is one to cherish and proves to be a great example of succeeding in grabbing attention with minimum of effort. Clive Owen looking bored, walks into a crowded coffee shop. As he walks away (sneaking a drop of alcohol for good measure) suddenly the shop explodes! Prepare to jump with shock as this happens! Shot in one continuous take, Cuaron showcases the movie's rough feel and brings us in a future Britain where things are about to get heated!

Up

Animated opening sequences don't get more magical or devastating than UP's magnificent 'Married Life' segment. Truly anyone who doesn't find this enthralling, must have had their heart ripped out early in life, because it wonderfully captures the immense joy of finding the perfect mate and the crushing lows of losing them. It also sets up the character Carl's grumpy old man feel and aids our sympathy for him in the movie ahead.

The Social Network

Aided by Aaron Sorkin's razor sharp script, this opening break up scene in David Fincher's movie lays the ground work for Mark Zuckerburg's journey into the midst of fame and fortune, as being a red flag indicator for his difficult persona. Jesse Eisenberg and Rooney Mara truly make this scene come alive and you can feel the gradual hatred building to the point of things breaking apart! As break up scenes go, none will be more fabulously scripted than this!

Aguirre: The Wrath of God

Werner Herzog has always been a director who likes to get straight to the point, his opening sequence for Aguirre gets right to that. As we watch our band of heroes on their doomed search for El Dorado walking along a dangerous mountain path, it foreshadows the madness, murder and the series of other 'unfortunate events' that will follow suit. But what Herzog really succeeds at here, is creating an unsettling aura that will follow Aguirre throughout.

Apocalypse Now

Francis Ford Coppola's beginning to his Palme D'or winning classic is one that forever sticks in the mind. Opening with the sound helicopter blades followed swiftly after by flames rising from a tree line hit by Napalm- we sit up straight away. Interlaced with the haunted gaze of Captain Willard (Martin Sheen), it gives an eerie indicator of Willard's state of mind and the violent climax of his journey. Perfectly sound tracked by 'The End' by The Doors, this proved to be one of the last great moments of Coppola's career.  

Sunset Boulevard

Billy Wilder's opening scene to Sunset Boulevard is a great moment in the history of classic Hollywood cinema, as it plays out in reverse of the story. Watching police cars with sirens blaring head towards a large Hollywood house, we hear William Holden's narration advising us someone has been killed! But as arrive on the crime scene, learn that the man is none other than Holden himself! Wilder beautifully sets up a dark and mystique feel to this tale and we are given a great device to make us wonder how Holden ended up in water?

Jaws

The moment we hear John Williams' pulsating orchestral scores, we know instantly that Jaws is about to appear. This moment caused a great number of people to fear going into open water and Steven Spielberg proves here what a master of suspense he can be. The very second we begin underwater, our bodies freeze over with fear as we see the shark about to grab his first prey! This moment would demonstrate the qualities Spielberg has been able to bring and this moment is still ageless in cinema.

Touch of Evil

Orson Welles' opening shot of his 1958 crime classic is a masterclass in how to nail one continuous tracking shot. Watching Inspector Vargas (Charlton Heston) and his wife (Janet Leigh), you see a bomb being loaded into a car- which they pass several times on the way to the Mexican boarder! Welles builds the suspense up to unbearable levels and the thought this bomb could explode at any point stays with us throughout! The dark noir feel of the movie begins with the moment and it is still one of Hollywood's most perfect examples.

Trainspotting

Danny Boyle's arrival on the world of film was cemented with his excellent opening sequence to the 1996 British Classic. Arriving on the thumping drums of 'Lust for Life' by Iggy Pop, we hear Renton's (Ewan McGregor) almost poetic 'Choose Life' speech. The scenes that follow set up the characters and encapsulates the joy that their life of heroin brings them. But it will also add to the narrative drive later on and the euphoric high comes one horrific come down!

Inglorious Basterds

Tarantino's opener to his WW2 piece is one that has life and death hanging in the balance. The moment that Colonel Hans Lander (Christoph Waltz) arrives, you know this is no ordinary soldier because he has a wit and intelligence higher than most men! Also it superbly positions the awkward place the farmer has got himself into, does he give into the demands of Landa? Or does he make a brave stand and possible lose his life? QT brings alive one his most monstrous yet elegant characters and will prove to be a dangerous adversary for all that follow