ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

Famke Jansson

Door Mouse: Facing Modern Monsters

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Hell hath no fury like a Mouse scorned…

Written and directed by Avan Jogia, Door Mouse tells the story of Mouse (Hayley Law), a comic-book creator who earns her living working at a burlesque club. Hanging out with her friend Ugly (Keith Powers), Mouse carries herself with confidence and strength, even if she can’t seem to catch a break. However, when young women from her circle begin to disappear, Mouse scrambles to find out the truth about her friends, even if it means stepping deeper into the shadows.

Unflinching and uncompromising, Mouse is a neo-noir that burns with heat. The noir genre is often imitated with its filtered colours and voice-over narration but, frankly, it doesn’t always leave an impact. However, Door Mouse has such a fury in its soul that one cannot help but be drawn in. Through bleeding colours and endless shadows, Jogia creates a world that simply feels broken. The lines between right and wrong have all but been eliminated, leading to a world of blended morals and endless compromises. 

At the same time though, Jogia gives his film a punk rock flare that fuels it with energy. Although the air is heavy, there’s a frenetic nature to the film that builds in intensity as it unfolds. (This is best exemplified by Jogia’s use of graphic novel art to tell some of the film’s most brutal moments.) This unique blend of styles leads to a truly fascinating piece that digs into the evil of our world as it looks for some (any?) good.

Leading the charge though is an absolutely fiery performance from Law. As the emotionally disconnected and electrically-charged artist, Law is absolutely magnetic onscreen. Traditionally, the noir protagonist carries under a hard-nosed persona but requires a certain charisma but the strength of Law’s performance shines through. Despite living in a broken-down apartment, Mouse is an empowered woman, confident and fearless in all she does. Although she isn’t looking for trouble, neither does she accept it amidst her own circle. As such, Law steps into in this world with a burning fuse, willing to get her hands dirty if it helps protect and empowerd other young women.

Now, having said this, Door Mouse may not be for everyone. As is keeping with the genre, Mouse’s journey takes her into some dark and disturbing corners of modern society. As a result, it’s worth noting that Mousemay be uncomfortable viewing for some—and, in fact, it is meant to be. 

After all, Door Mouse is very much a story that wants to explore the nature of today’s monsters. Without giving away any spoilers, the toxicity in this world is tied the need for power. Whereas classic noir films like Kiss Me Deadly and Chinatown exposed issues of their day like corruption or the nuclear threat, Door Mouse focuses on some of the seediest realities of our world, such as trafficking and exploitation. Willing to sit in the shadows of evil, Jogia points out that the truest demons of our time are those that prey upon the autonomy of others, 

Even so, he also acknowledges the power of sharing stories that shed light on oppression. For instance, Mouse’s artistic expressions become a voice for the voiceless, causing a stir amongst the community who clamour to know the truth. (“People want to know what happened…,” Mouse is reminded.) In this way, Jogia acknowledges the fact that darkness may be pervasive… but the real heroes are those that are willing to kick against it by speaking out.

In the end, Door Mouse should be a special viewing for fans of neo-noir. Blending styles and genres, there is a grit to this film that is palpable, making it one of the more memorable examples of this style in recent memory. Jogia understands the tropes of the genre yet makes them entirely his own.

Needless to say, this Mouse has teeth.

Door Mouse is available in theatres and on VOD on January 13th, 2023.

Primal: Nicolas Un[Cage]d

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Is there anyone in Hollywood having more fun than Nicolas Cage?

Though Cage is a former Oscar-winner (Leaving Las Vegas) and action hero (The Rock, Face/Off), this current phase of his career has seen him make some seemingly bizarre film choices that range from the horrifying (Mom and Dad) to the strange (Mandy) to the horrifyingly strange (Color Out of Space). In fact, in the last 4 years alone, Cage has released 22different films.

Let that sink in for a moment.

Twenty-two films. In four years.

However, in no way is that to suggest that his movies are lacking in quality. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. In recent years, Cage has embraced the bizarre stories that he produces in such a way that he, arguably, has turned B-movies into an art-form unto themselves. The wilder the film is, the more Cage engages it. 

And the audience loves him for it.

With his latest film, Primal, Cage plays Frank Walsh, a big-game hunter who lives in the jungle and specializes in rare species. Having recently caught a rare white jaguar in Brazil, Walsh books passage on a ship in order to sell the beast to a zoo for a large amount of money. Unfortunately, the ship is also being used by US Marshalls to transfer notorious killer Richard Loffler (Kevin Durand) across the ocean to stand trial. When Loffler escapes, he releases the dangerous animals onto the ship as well, turning the journey into a wild game of kill or be killed.

Directed by Nick Powell, Primal is a fun ride that continues Cage’s career trend of choosing projects that never take themselves too seriously. As we’ve seen on multiple occasions, Cage is enthusiastic about the chance to play a hero that borders on the edge of darkness. While he never completely allows himself to free-wheel around on screen with the sort of abandon that we’ve seen in other films, Cage is clearly having a blast as Walsh. As we’ve seen (and, frankly, grown to love about) Cage is his willingness to treat silliness soberly and Primal offers him ample opportunity to immerse himself into the role. (Ironically, however, the person who seems to most relish their place in the film is actually Durand, who brings Cage-style energy to the role of serial killer Loffler, a man charged with ‘crimes against humanity’ and banished to a cage like, well, an animal…)

With this in mind, Primal also wants to be an exploration of what separates man from beast. Mocked and mistreated by the US Marshalls that oversee him, Loffler is viewed as less than human by his captors. As a result, he is treated no better than the legendary white jaguar that Walsh keeps in the ship’s hold. After his escape, he goes on the prowl, prepared to devour anyone who dares stand against him. Vicious and unbalanced, Loffler is a force to be reckoned with… and yet their treatment of him reinforces his animalistic nature.

Conversely, Primal takes the opposite approach with the unkept and unpolished Walsh. As a hunter-for-hire, Walsh thrives in the jungles and (mostly) respects the beasts that he pursues. While he seeks to treats his animals well, Walsh struggles to connect within human relationships. Even so, those around him continuously reinforce the idea that that believe he’s a good man underneath his gruff exterior. As a result, Walsh gradually begins to change his behaviour and look out for the well-being of others. In essence, by juxtaposing Walsh’s redemption with Loffler’s descent, Primalsuggests that what separates man from the rest of the animal kingdom is his ability to recognize the value of human life in others.

Admittedly though, this might be overthinking the film’s intent just a little.

Primal is not a film that’s meant to be dissected or is looking for consideration as an Oscar-darling. Instead, the film is meant to be digested for all its glorious insanity. To its credit, the film embraces the madness and, of course, the key draw to a film like Primal is Cage himself, who does not disappoint. 

After all, as the current master of the B-movie, Cage takes films like this seriously so you don’t have to. 

Primal is available on VOD on July 28th, 2020 and on Blu-Ray and DVD on August 11th, 2020.

The Postcard Killings: Murder, with a Twist

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Imagine that, one day, you get a postcard that states, ‘Love will never die’. Would you be confused? What would you do with it? 

The Postcard Killings tells two stories from both the protagonist and antagonist points of view. Jacob Kanon (Jeffery Dean Morgan) is an NYPD detective who gets the call that his daughter and his son in-law have been murdered. Detective Kanon is determined to seek the killer of his daughter as her hands are missing from her body. Jacob’s wife, Valerie Kanon (Famke Janssen), decides to do some investigating close to home while Jacob takes himself overseas to Europe to pursue the killer. Their teamwork through phone calls and Facetime calls is spectacular. They help each other out during the investigation when one is stuck on a problem. What’s more, Jacob does not just have his wife as an ally, he also recruits Inspector Bubilitz (Joachim Krol) and Desse Lombard (Cush Jumbo), a Swedish reporter, to help in his search. When Lombard gets a postcard from the killer regarding their most recent murder, Desse decides to write a story on Jacob while trying to help him solve the case.

The Postcard Killings leaves you at the edge of your seat and takes you on a wild ride to see if Jacob will get his justice. (Also, the huge plot twist in the first 30 minutes leaves you shocked.) While I thought that The Postcard Killings would feel familiar in the vein of Taken, where the killers reveal themselves in the first few minutes of the film and the father decides to take justice into his own hands. But, this film is completely different as the killers remain hidden in plain sight, keeping their identities secret until later on in the film.

Jeffery Dean Morgan does a fantastic performance playing Detective Kanon. While you might think he would just play the tough guy detective that will stop at nothing to find justice for his daughter. However, Killings allows us to also see the detective’s soft side. For example, Morgan gives an emotional performance during the moments when he realizes that his daughter is gone or when he sees something that reminds him of his daughter. Because of his emotional display, the audience is really allowed to connect with his character.

If you really like crime and mystery films and are looking for something that isn’t afraid to try something new, then this is the movie for you. The characters are great and even with the plot leaves you at the edge of your seat as you are trying to solve the mystery as well. I highly recommend this movie to some crime fans that are out there. The movie leaves you with a slight sigh of relief (and also a potential sequel opportunity as well). 

Check out The Postcard Killings.

The Postcard Killings is available on VOD now.