movies
Sydney Morning Herald
Monday August 17, 2009
Vinegar Hill(2005) Seven, noonThings aren't terribly flash for Ellen and Jake Grier, a young couple with two kids who have hit a financial crisis. A severe lack of funds obliges them to move in with Jake's parents, who live on a farm in Wisconsin where both of them were raised and where what you see isn't necessarily what you get. Past problems re-emerge as assorted events unfold and a disturbing family secret (is there no end to them?) is exposed to the light of scrutiny. Eminently missable.Blood Brothers(2004) SBS One, midnightGunslingers with a burning desire to hang up their six-guns and retire to a modest life on the ranch with gingham-clad schoolteacher sweetie Peggy aren't exactly a rarity. It seems all manner of hitmen and gangsters yearn for the simple life but generally go for one last heist or caper in which some hapless cop, on his last case before retiring, is killed. Here, Hung, a triad leader in Hong Kong, has decided that when his pregnant wife gives birth he will retire from the criminal milieu and become a family man. Word of his decision leaks out into the underworld, precipitating a rush by rivals and wannabes to assume his status. Wing and Turbo, a couple of aspirational punks, agree to hasten the process by offing Hung, realising the notoriety associated with such a hit will make them a hit and prove useful in cementing their status in whatever regime becomes ascendant. Meanwhile, Hung and his right-hand man, known as Left Hand, are in vigorous disagreement over his succession plans, despite enjoying a relationship based on honour and respect. They know the knives are out for both of them. Left Hand believes quick, clean violence is the solution; Hung insists the gentler way is better. If Left Hand can appreciate this, he will be in a better position to succeed his boss and control the triad. This is a stylish and dazzling story about loyalty, blood brotherhood and matters of honour as deep as, if not deeper than, those canvassed in the Godfather films. The film's visual appeal recalls the elegance of Wong Kar-wai's In the Mood for Love and Andy Lau as Hung is perfectly matched by Jacky Cheung as Left Hand. Shawn Yue and Edison Chen, as the two up-and-coming thugs, are pretty good, too.
© 2009 Sydney Morning Herald
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