Tag: Thriller

‘The Hummingbird Project’ just has to based on a true story. It must have really happened. The setup, the punch, the end result. It has a name attached and everything! It’s real! That’s my story and I’m sticking– what?! It isn’t real?! Impossible. This felt so much like true events that I searched for information on its characters, hoping I’d find out more about them. But I was fooled. From what’s going on in the world today, plus such vivid details in the film, it felt like every bit of this happened in a story already forgotten amongst all the rest of how to get more money for ourselves and how to get it faster than anyone else. Oh, and of course, without regard to anyone or anything. Sure, the telling of two men managing to make digital information move faster, between the Kansas Electronic Exchange and New York Stock Exchange, than anyone else can seem exciting, but I assure you, it’s quite banal. The characters are not, however, which is why I can’t say this is one to skip.

Director Kim Nguyen uncovers for his audience how cutthroat a business the digital world has become. Vincent (Eisenberg) and Anton (Skarsgård) are cousins working in New York. They have a shared dream of building a line of fiber-optic cable from Kansas to New Jersey that would beat out the competition and give everyone using it a leg up on everyone else as far as digital information is concerned. Every millisecond counts, after all. If this procedure goes well, they will make millions. They’re the perfect team to get this done… on paper. They can talk a good game and do have the smarts but are impractical, even farcical when it comes to executing their own proposal. Vincent is a fast talker who’s, well, very much like Jesse Eisenberg but Anton is quite different. That difference is the story and, comparatively, quite appealing.

Vincent talks people out of their money to help the pair advance in their business. That’s what he does best. With the other side of his mouth, he can communicate to another person he’s taking advantage of, that if they help him, it’ll benefit them. It’s for the best if they give Vincent a piece of their property to dig under. Sure he may have to part with a few bucks, but in the end, Vincent comes out on top.

He too good at getting them everything they want that you know it’s too good to be true. Yep. He suddenly falls ill… leaving Anton. Anton is a special nerd who isn’t good on his own. He’s not the hustler Vincent is and when pressured tends to break down. They’re an unreliable team but if it wasn’t for their old boss, Eva Torres (Hayek), trying to stop them at every turn, they’d have gotten a lot further.

Eva is the powerful and manipulative trader at the top who lost Vincent and Anton as employees but will not lose her speed to them. What it comes down to is, they’re in way over their heads. Once they found out Eva was tipped off to what they were doing, maybe they should have gotten out of the pool.        

Skarsgård was fantastic in this. He was comedic yet, simply… strange. This character is unlike anything he’s done before which is always a plus for any actor and certainly his audience. Eisenberg was incredible. I’ve yet to see him in anything I didn’t love him in. Here his performance is stirring and powerful. He nails the role every single time. And Hayek was strong in the devious, scheming administrative role that usually goes to a man. The film these actors were in together wasn’t quite as good as they were in their roles, but it was thought-provoking at times and an insanely deep ride to be on. Though it isn’t all that exciting, it does move at a pace that will keep you involved in the story to see it all play out. As I’ve stated though, it’s the list of well-chosen actors that will make you have to stay and see what would keep a man with stomach cancer from giving up his optic dreams. His idea is absurd. The logic behind it makes no sense. What’s a millisecond right? Thing is, apparently, to the stock market, it’s everything. 

This film will be opening at Harkins Shea 14 this Friday, March 22nd.

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Written and directed by Michael Winterbottom of ‘The Trip’ movies, ‘The Wedding Guest’ does a good job of disguising from the audience what the film is truly about. It starts out as a thriller of intrigue and deception, but builds into a cherished friendship and, dare I say, a relationship between two people who least expected to be in one; especially with one another. I’d like to add that the title is incredibly misleading. In fact, if one were to go by the title, someone would be upset at what they might think they’re venturing into. They could assume perhaps a comedy or romance is in order, yet I assure you this is anything but a farce or a love story. It’s a beautifully shot suspense by cinematographer Giles Nuttgens (Colette, Hell or High Water) which manages one hell of a unique look at the areas where it was shot.

At first, you’re on a trip through India and Pakistan with a man you haven’t yet been introduced to, but you are aware of what he’s doing and you’re certain he’s up to no good. He gets on a plane, rents a car, grabs duct tape and buys some guns. If it’s a wedding he’s planning on crashing, who isn’t he happy with?! You might speculate it’s the groom at this point. Jealousy?

The genre ‘thriller’ for which the movie is tagged is half correct. While watching, you could be somewhat disappointed in how it’s playing out because, on occasion, the film itself can’t decide what category to fall under. I must add that by the time it’s over, you’ll glance back on the film as a whole and say to yourself, ‘Well done, Winterbottom.’ That said, you still can’t ignore where the film ultimately has a hiccup or two. While it does its job of entertaining you, there are areas of the script that are a bit ho-hum and hard to overlook. Most importantly, Winterbottom needed to get to the point quicker. Regardless, you’ll excuse this. Mostly because of the cast.

Dev Patel (Lion, Slumdog Millionaire) and Bollywood film and stage actress, Radhika Apte, give outstanding performances. Their characters, Jay and Samira, are trapped in a seemingly dicey and ever slippery situation, but both are well aware of the game they’re playing and are quite adept in the art of manipulation. Their firsthand knowledge of a good con keeps them ahead of the game and also has them skeptical of one another. Jay finds out Samira isn’t quite as innocent as she seems. Though he’s guarded, he eventually feels something stir and wishes he had met her under different circumstances. 

The plot is that Samira lives in Pakistan where her family is going to make her marry someone she doesn’t love. Jay has been hired to kidnap Samira from her impending nuptials before it’s too late. He’s to bring her to the man she loves so they can run away and be together. This is where the title comes in. Though it’s lucky for her that Jay nabs her before the wedding happens, he’s not exactly a guest. In what is originally sold as a real kidnapping, you’re worried for her safety when Jay busts into her home. He isn’t aware that he’s helping her out of an arranged marriage, so the audience doesn’t learn this until right away either. When the true motive is introduced it all starts falling into place.

As I’ve mentioned, it’s sometimes slow but the more and more you get to know them, the more and more sexual tension builds. You want to see them together and before you know it you’re vested in their relationship. In the end, you come to the conclusion that Samira was more than likely the mastermind behind everything all along. Jay, as well as countless other men, may well have been a fly buzzing to close to her trap. Though you don’t see it at first, there’s some real genius in this film. ‘The Wedding Guest’ is unpredictable, daunting and has a creatively disguised wolf in sheep’s clothing. What more can you ask for from your noir?

In Phoenix find it playing at Camelview at Fashion Square!