Today's Review: The Program

Second review for FilmTotaal released this week (but penned last month):

The Program - recensie

Whoever considers this 'the Lance Armstrong' film is wrong, despite it being the only non documentary feature film about the former sports legend thus far. Thing is, at its core it's not about the seven-time Tour de France winner. It's about the journalist who exposed him after years of persistent digging. It's even based on the guy's book. So naturally, Armstrong isn't depicted in a flattering way and that's putting it mildly. The infamous cyclist is portrayed as an absolutely single minded, appalingly arrogant fraud throughout the piece, with little to no redeeming character qualities. Simply said, a total dick. Now, of course nobody will deny that aspect of his character exists. But it can't have been all he ever was/is. After all, he became an inspiration for millions. With the solely negative traits he's endowed with in this film, it's not likely he would ever have been that widely admired. But to the brave, heroic journalist who risked his career and maybe even his life to bring the man down, Armstrong was utterly evil. So that's the Armstrong we get on screen. An Armstrong devoid of nuances, a character from somebody else's pages rather than his own book of life. Which rules The Program out as the biopic it claims to be. But then, history is written by the victors. Which Armstrong himself ultimately didn't rightly turn out to be.

More was to be expected from director Stephen Frears. His previous work showed him most interested in the human side of things, the choices and thoughts that make people who they are, rather than who they seem to be to the rest of the world. The Queen is the best example, where he showed the Queen of England to be just as limited a human being as the rest of us, and therefore a relatable character. The same doesn't hold true for Lance Armstrong, who is portrayed far too one sided and excessively obsessed a character to feel really real. Good performances not withstanding, since Ben Foster does an intense job at playing the star cyclist. Perhaps too much so, going over that top rather than staying right under it. Of course, Chris O'Dowd gives less of a notable performance, thus making him feel more real in the role of the intrepid reporter, which also makes him feel more human than his antagonist, as is the film's intention. And when you say O'Dowd, comedy is the first thing that springs to mind. The Program often feels like it is just that, especially in its first half. After all, we shouldn't take one of the greatest frauds ever too seriously, the film suggests. Too bad, I would have loved to have seen a movie that explains just why Armstrong did the things he did, rather than this film which only shows what those things were (which we basically already knew), rather than their motivations. But why would we need to know why a total dick does what a total dick does, right?

Today's Mini-Review: The Sapphires

The Sapphires: ***/*****, or 7/10

One of various movies to deal with Australia's painful past regarding its treatments of its aborigine population, The Sapphires embraces a lighter, oft comedic tone while focusing on that which unites people of all creeds and races: music and love. Set in 1968 and starring Chris O'Dowd (of Bridesmaids fame) as washed up, constantly drunk musician and would-be talent manager Dave Lovelace, who stumbles upon the discovery of his life when he meets a group of young aboriginal girls determined to break through at the music scene. Problem is, these young women, family too, have their own emotional baggage, don't always get along and prefer to sing country songs. Not to mention their ethnicity is not favoured on stage, as they experience during a local talent contest where they are booed and harrassed off stage despite being the only contestants with actual talent. It's up to Dave, who admires their passion and perseverance, to shape them into a worthy song group that will capture the hearts of millions, admittedly also for his own commercial benefit, as soon as he has convinced them to go with the times and adopt soul as their style. They swiftly decide touring for the American forces in Vietnam is their best bet to get noticed, the dangers of war notwithstanding. A thrilling string of performances throughout Nam follows, where the girls taste the joys of success and love, but also the sorrows of loss and death. The movie employs an overall feel-good approach, but obviously can't ignore the harrowing past of social inequality and blatant racism aboriginal people had to live through in the days, which is grippingly fleshed out in less scenes than maybe should have been the case considering the heavy subject matter of cultural genocide and overall alarming sights of discrimination the movie also covers. Despite the delightful and swinging tone that rules much of the film, it's the scenes of rampant prejudice that stick with you the most, an inescapable fact that sometimes makes the movie feel unbalanced. Fortunately there's also plenty of sequences that cover the feeling that 'the times, they are changing' for the better, slowly but surely, which allows the girl band to rise to stardom under the stage name the Sapphires. The foursome of singers makes for many a smashing musical scene, while it's gratifying to see the lead actresses weren't cast solely for their vocal talents, but also for their ability to carry emotional scenes compellingly. It's O'Dowd (a white guy!) that steals the show though, as a sleazy con musician ultimately revealed to have his heart in the right place, which does make for a rather sappy, cheerful ending. But after all the Sapphires have been through, you feel they've earned it.