"Operation Finale" Review
Operation Finale is a historic think piece that depicts the take down of a Nazi who acted as one of the masterminds behind the Holocaust. Adolf Eichmann (Ben Kingsley) was less famous than Hitler but he was equally horrible in the extent of his actions- they were beyond just “following orders”. Adolf Eichmann fled to Argentina to avoid being tried for his actions in an Israeli court. A team of trained agents (who happened to be Jewish) sought to bring this evil man to justice to honor his victims. Even though the film is a political drama, the storyline doesn’t distort history in a distasteful manner. The film genuinely follows the events to the best of the ability a historical account could.
The cinematography of Operation Finale is incredible! Director of photography, Javier Aguirresarobe, certainly created masterful work. The shots are calculated and creative; the coloring of the film uses muted tones to reflect the era. Alongside the camera work, the lighting is delicate yet deliberate with night shots having a neo-noir feel to them, while other scenes take your breath away from beautifully diffused sunlight. Unfortunately, all that glitters isn’t gold and these aesthetics don’t carry the film in the manner one would hope.
Even though the film is two hours in duration, the pacing is not what will deter audience engagement, kind of. While the cinematography is beautiful, and the acting is well executed, something about the entire piece feels flat. Seasoned film director Chris Weitz creates an intriguing film that contemplates the political nature of the time, however, he doesn’t take into account the lack of action in the script which becomes problematic with the plot. The story comes to a crawl, which forces the audience out of the film. This distraction throughout the movie ultimately builds to an anticlimactic climax.
Finding an appropriate balance is the true issue for Operation Finale, which can understandably be difficult to tackle with historical pieces like this. Sometimes the story doesn’t have a lot of action, but usually, creatives have a way of using the thought-provoking material to compensate for the lack of action. Other times the film is filled with so much action that it just becomes an unnecessary and violent bloodbath. Screenwriter Matthew Orton uses interesting threads to weave a storyline together, however, the essence of the story is never quite found. The film reads as interesting ideas that are underutilized and falls flat. This is unfortunate because for a film that depicts such an important part of history, it demands a better-crafted execution.
It’s unfortunate the writing doesn’t do the story justice. However, I would not go as far to say I will never watch the film again; it was engaging to see. It is peppered with the commonly recognized Hollywood Jewish Humor which acted as the comedic relief throughout the story. This part of the writing was well executed and the humor came at the perfect time, every time. Small, charming things within the film gave it personality, the characters each had their quips and one liners, making the film more enjoyable within the heavy subject matter. The interpersonal relationships between each actor is genuine and believable.
With all of that being said, this film is a great example of how big budgets can sometimes fail; the elements of the film were there to make it a great piece but there wasn’t a clear cut storyline that was capable of being followed by even the best actors. The cinematography carries the film but I fear the story itself may disengage the average viewer. Even with the elemental issues within the film, I would still recommend seeing it; the story is an important one to know and the tactical actions that were taken to bring Adolf Eichmann to justice are noteworthy.
Rating: C+
"Ex Machina" Review
When the lights go down in the theater I generally want one of two things. I’d like to be entertained or intellectually stimulated and challenged. “Ex Machina” is one of those films that does both!
Writer/director Alex Garland pulls you into his world immediately in the first minutes of the film as Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson) is the winner of...well we don’t know what, but his colleagues are extremely jealous so it must be good. We soon learn that he’s won a week long stay with Nathan (Oscar Isaac). Nathan is a legend in the computer programming world. He invented Blue Book (think Google), the company Caleb works for, and lives on an estate so large that two hours of flying in a helicopter covers a portion of it.
Upon landing on the highly secured grounds, Caleb learns that Nathan has him there to perform a “Turing Test”. The test is for a human to converse with an artificial intelligence (AI) and reach a conclusion on whether it has human consciousness. Enter Ava (Alicia Vikander), Nathan’s AI machine with a pretty human face. Caleb participates in seven sessions with Ava, one per day he’s there. Yet, with each day that he’s there, Caleb must decipher who he can trust in the highly secretive world, Nathan or Ava.
Isaac continues to deliver as the tech guru. He blends arrogance into his prodigy character in just the right way where we like him enough to go for a drink after work but would never invite him over for dinner. Vikander’s performance is all in her face, literally, as the rest of the machine is parts. Thus, the fascination of every slight “micro-expression” (as she may call it) in what her face communicates is as intriguing for us as it is for Caleb. Gleeson portrays the pure passion and excitement of his character in such a way that we’re easily won over and happy for his journey.
With a stellar cast in place, the key is the script and directing. Fortunately, both are handled with precision by Garland. The script keeps you wondering what will happen next with subtext riddled throughout, while his controlled pace creates an uneasiness that sticks with you from the moment Caleb enters the compound. Garland uses the entire frame to tell his story. Characters in the foreground are strategically placed in juxtaposition with characters in the background to keep the audience drawing conclusions as to what is really going on.
“Ex Machina” is an intellectual movie that explores technology, morality, and even how we perceive beauty. I have a feeling if Ava’s face was scarred, deformed, or even just a machine the film wouldn’t work as well. So if you’re looking to be entertained and intellectually stimulated this weekend, “Ex Machina” will deliver!
Rating: A-