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Olivia Munn

Violet: I Don’t Know Who I Am Anymore

September 16, 2021 by Julie Levac Leave a Comment

Violet (2021) - IMDb

In Violet, her feature length directorial debut, Justine Bateman blesses the screen with an incredibly thought provoking glimpse into the life of Violet Calder (Olivia Munn).  Violet, a seemingly successful and high-functioning woman, lives her life in fear.  Bending to the will of the voice inside her head, Violet limits herself in both her career and personal life.

Violet

Bateman, who is not only the director but also the writer and producer of this piece, uses text overlay to let us in on Violet’s inner dialogue.  The text quickly reveals her intense negative self talk.  Violet seems broken inside and yearns to feel “normal”.

Violet struggles with toxic family relationships.  Having previously lost her father, and never having a good relationship with her mother, she distances herself from her family.  It’s clear that her family doesn’t understand her or her way of life.  They label her as some ‘big shot Hollywood type’, and cannot wrap their heads around why she is so isolated from the family.  It’s almost as if Violet is struggling with her inner child during this time, not knowing whether she should do certain things because that’s what she’s been programmed to do, or embrace her adult way of thinking.

In her career, Violet feels indebted to the one who “discovered” or “made” her.  It takes no time to see that Violet is very talented in her field.  She is knowledgeable and has leadership qualities.  But imposter syndrome kicks in and Violet often doesn’t believe that her voice matters or that she deserves to have a seat at the table.

Luke Bracey, Olivia Munn in 'Violet'

Throughout the film, some of the text discusses Violet’s skin.  Violet clearly has her walls up and it’s like her skin is her protective barrier.  When Violet begins to change, she sheds her skin and is more exposed and vulnerable.  But also, and more importantly, free.  We read along as Violet’s skin gets damaged by the words and actions of others, but is strengthened again as she begins to stand up for herself and make choices that benefit her rather than others. 

This film normalizes the fact that it’s okay to grow, change, and be selfish in order to do what’s best for yourself.  It is relatable and important.  Despite the more despondent tone of the film, I felt quite hopeful at the end.  It’s a reminder to trust our instincts.  It’s okay to say no and speak your mind.  We don’t always have to censor ourselves in fear of the response of others.

Violet is now playing at TIFF ’21.

Listen below to my interview with Justine Bateman here!

Filed Under: Film, Reviews, TIFF Tagged With: Justine Bateman, Olivia Munn, Violet

Richard Jewell: The End of the Innocence

March 17, 2020 by J. Alan Sharrer Leave a Comment

They’re a common sight around malls, retail stores, and companies these days. They help make sure things go smoothly yet are often ignored or make fun of. Of course, I’m referring to the humble security guard.

Perhaps the most infamous of all security personnel in the past 25 years has to be Richard Jewell. For the younger generation, his name is not one that will likely register as important. Director Clint Eastwood wants to change that with his latest film Richard Jewell. It is a tale of heroism, woe, and frustration that will reward the patient filmgoer and serves as a reminder of life before the world’s innocence was shattered one fateful evening.

Richard Jewell (Paul Walter Hauser) was a rather portly individual who lived in the Atlanta area and had a dream of getting into law enforcement. He was good with guns, extremely good at remembering things, but absolutely lousy in people to people relationships. His track record wasn’t the best either, partially due to the people he was trying to protect making fun of or simply ignoring him.

At the opening of the film, Jewell’s trying to make ends meet as a supply clerk in a law firm. He encounters Watson Bryant (Sam Rockwell), a no-nonsense lawyer who doesn’t take anything from anyone, including elected officials. The two briefly get to know each other over candy bars and a discussion in a video arcade before Jewell takes another job, this time as security detail at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. There, he helps protect a music venue inside Centennial Park, the hub of action outside the sporting venues.

All is well for the first few concerts until one fateful evening when Jewell spots a suspicious backpack under a bench near the sound and lighting tower. He calls the police over to check (this is an international event, after all) and begins getting people out of the way. Suddenly the backpack explodes, raining fire and shrapnel throughout the park. Two people were killed and over 100 injured, transforming the capital city of Georgia instantaneously. Jewell goes home that evening, content that he helped keep the situation from being significantly worse.

The next day, he discovers that his observation and quick thinking has won him fame in the eyes of the world. People want to talk to him on television, people cheer when they see him, and he becomes an instant celebrity. Meanwhile, the FBI begins to look into who planted the backpack and called 911 with a warning about the bomb. They don’t have any real leads, but after acquiring information from Jewell’s past, they suddenly begin to think he was the culprit, doing it for fame and notoriety. With that, Richard’s quiet lifestyle (he lives in an apartment building with his mother [played by the always excellent Kathy Bates]) is completely shattered as the FBI does everything possible to make him the world’s biggest enemy.

Usually such situations are kept fairly quiet. However, Kathy Scruggs, a rather arrogant and pushy reporter from the Atlanta Journal newspaper (played with realistic smarminess by Olivia Wilde) is able to coerce one of the FBI detectives to inform her who they’re going after. They have a paper to print, you know. When she finds out, she makes the FBI’s intentions known to the world. 

Cue circus music.

Jewell suddenly cannot move more than 15 feet without a reporter yelling questions at him or hearing the shutters of cameras go off. He doesn’t know what to do. At this point, he reaches for the one person who might be able to help him–the lawyer he stocked with candy bars a few months earlier. Since then, Watson Bryant has gone into his own practice and decides to help the poor guy out. The question is whether the mass of humanity descending on Jewell or the FBI will destroy him first. 

Richard Jewell is a film that, for me, hit very close to home. You see, I was at Centennial Park a few hours before the bomb exploded. I played in the fountains and snapped a few 35mm pictures before heading back to South Carolina. That night, my friends and I huddled around a television set, aghast at the video news outlets were showing of the aftermath and thankful to God that we left when we did. I also distinctly remember the media’s evisceration of Jewell and how he was made to look like had the whole bombing planned (in reality, Eric Rudolph confessed to it a few months later). I remember feeling sorry for the guy but had no idea how much his life changed as a result of the FBI and media. Of course, the film shows Jewell as an avid owner of guns and is extremely knowledgeable about security–things the FBI used against him. Bryant tells him to not say anything, but he keeps talking (since he’s so big into law enforcement), making things worse on everyone around him. It’s only after he realizes how the ordeal has hurt his mother that he finally gets the nerve to confront the FBI directly. 

As for the film itself, it’s very good and has some incredible acting. Bates was nominated for a Golden Globe recently for her role as Jewell’s mom Bobi. Hauser and Rockwell are great in their individual roles but magical when they share the screen. You see and feel their relationship build, change, and eventually transform each other. Munn seems to me to be the weak link, but after giving it some thought, she adds a necessary layer to transform the film from ho-hum to must-see. And this is a film that deserves to be seen and its voice heard for past, present, and future generations. 

That evening in Centennial Park, anyone off the street could walk in–there were police around, but no layer of security other than presence. One week later, I returned to Atlanta to see a handball match and found a completely different city. There was a feeling of nervousness everywhere. Security was beefed up considerably. In fact, in order to visit the park again, I had to go through two separate bag checks. The innocence was gone, never to be reclaimed again. 

At one point on this planet, there was innocence and no need for protection. Adam and Eve were sinless at first, having their pick of whatever they wanted to do and to eat. Sure, God warned them not to eat from one specific tree, but there was no security guard around for enforcement. When they finally gave in and tasted of the forbidden fruit, things changed. The innocence was lost. God, after a stern lecture, kicked them out of Eden–and added security detail in the form of a flaming sword so they could never get in again. Sin is costly, but it doesn’t have to rule in us thanks to Jesus and his birth, life, death, and return to life once more. He’s ready to forgive all those who call on him to do so.

Make sure you put Richard Jewell on your must-see list this year. It’s thrilling, harrowing, and a sobering reminder of innocence lost–both individually and as a society.

Special features include both “The Real Story of Richard Jewell” and “The Making of Richard Jewell” with many of the principles (Eastwood, Hamm, Rockwell, Bates, etc.) included.

Filed Under: Film, Reviews Tagged With: Adam and Eve, Atlanta, Bombing, Clint Eastwood, FBI, Innocence, Kathy Bates, Olivia Munn, Olympics, Paul Walter Hauser, richard jewell, Sam Rockwell

5.01 Bringing THE PREDATOR Back to Life

September 24, 2018 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

http://screenfish.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/5.01-The-Predator.mp3

With the return of The Predator, writer/director Shane Black wants to take you back to the 80s for some good old-fashioned violence and horror… but do other stereotypes and issues come with that? In the Season 5 premiere, Steve welcomes Peter Adourian to talk about The Predator‘s views on hyper-masculinity, mental health and throwback films in the modern era.

Want to continue to conversation at home?  Click the link below to download ‘Fishing for More’ — some small group questions for you to bring to those in your area.

5.01 The Predator

Thanks Peter for joining us!

DF-14814_R2 – A deadly Predator escapes from a secret government compound in Twentieth Century Fox’s THE PREDATOR. Photo Credit: Kimberley French.

Filed Under: Film, Film Festivals, Podcast, TIFF Tagged With: #Metoo, Arnold Schwarzenegger, feminism, Michael-Keegan Key, Olivia Munn, Predator, Shane Black, The Predator, Thomas Jane

TIFF ’18: The Predator

September 14, 2018 by Steve Norton Leave a Comment

From the outer reaches of space to the small-town streets of suburbia, the hunt comes home. The universe’s most lethal hunters are stronger, smarter and deadlier than ever before, having genetically upgraded themselves with DNA from other species. When a boy accidentally triggers their return to Earth, only a ragtag crew of ex-soldiers and an evolutionary biologist can prevent the end of the human race.

Directed by Shane Black (The Nice Guys), The Predatoris filled with his trademark humor and broken but likeable characters. Having actually helped write (and cameo in) the original film, Black is clearly familiar with—and passionate about—the franchise. Whereas other entries into the canon have often deviated from the charm and energy of the original film, Black is determined to transport his audience into the past to give them an experience similar to Arnold’s iconic piece and, in many ways, he almost succeeds. Built on the charm of his band of military ‘Loonies’, the film is often engaging and funny in the midst of its trademark violence. Characters like Coyle (Keegan-Michael Key), Nebraska (Travante Rhodes) and Baxley (Thomas Jane) are entertaining as the rag-tag band of misfits forced to take on their alien assailants. What’s more, the film has also delivered upgrades to the space-baddie himself, giving him an even more lethal edge. (And, of course, a highlight of the film remains the obligatory hunt in the woods, complete with shadowy kills and invisible attacks.) Packed to the brim with action and alien gore, The Predatoris a throw-back to the 80s action genre that Black knows the fans are craving.

But…

Admittedly, this is where things get awkward. While Black’s film invites the audience to take a trip back in time, it also exposes so many of the issues that were prevalent in the films of that time. Led by Quinn McKenna, the ‘Loonies’ are engaging… but they also reinforce the gender stereotypes of a bygone era. Female characters, while usually intelligent, are frequently pushed aside by their masculine heroes. Whether it is the fact that Emily is left exclusively to her home or to take care of the children (as is Olivia Munn’s Casey on several occasions), the women simply seem… outdated. (In fact, while on a mission, Casey actually shoots herself in the foot with a tranquilizer at one point, a plot point that is used for laughs at her expense by the men.) The argument could be made that the film is poking fun at these stereotypes, there is no evidence to support the theory. While one is likely not looking for depth of feminist theory in a film about The Predator, it also showcases what was missing at the time when viewed in a post-#MeToo world. Since all films are a window into the culture, it’s hard to blame the original film for being ignorant of what we’re speaking about today… but Black’s film should know better.

 A deadly Predator escapes from a secret government compound in Twentieth Century Fox’s THE PREDATOR. Photo Credit: Kimberley French.

In the end, The Predator mostly delivers what it promises and serves as a suitable addition to a franchise that is over 30 (!) years old. Black believes he knows what his audience wants to see: violence, R-rated laughs and invisible killers.

One simply wishes that he might have also upgraded his sensibilities as well.

 

Filed Under: Film, Film Festivals, Reviews, TIFF Tagged With: Michael-Keegan Key, Olivia Munn, Shane Black, The Predator, Thomas Jane, TIFF, TIFF18

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