Lords of Chaos (2018)

Lords of Chaos (2018)

Dir. Jonas Åkerlund

As a long-time fan of early Norwegian Black Metal, I didn't know what to expect from LoC. Would it be parody, satire, mockery, or bullshit sensationalism? Wikipedia describes it as a 'horror-thriller film', which was worrying.

The answer, as I see it, is that the film is none of those things entirely, but it does lose its way as the narrative goes on. Before that, however, for about an hour of its runtime it's a pleasingly straightforward presentation with a comfortable amount of black humour and a half-decent (but mostly surface deep) depiction of the lifestyle that informed the music, and vice-versa.

It's based on the book Lords of Chaos: The Bloody Rise of the Satanic Metal Underground (1998) by Michael Moynihan and Didrik Søderlind. I've not read the text, but am familiar with how the stories were reported across Europe, firstly by having been a reader of the UK music presses at the time of the happenings — which might seem like too peripherally a connection, but is itself something that the film alludes to, in one of its most daft scenes — and later through personal research on the internet.

Cilla (2014)

Cilla (2014)

Dir. Paul Whittington | 3 episodes, approx 45 minutes each.

I was born in the decade after the swinging sixties had swung their last, so my experience of Cilla Black while growing up was primarily as the red-headed woman on TV who said "lorra lorra laughs," and "Here's our Graham with a quick reminder..."

I knew her musically for having performed the emotionally stirring theme song to the film Alfie (1966), the UK version at least, but I knew nothing of how she rose from being a music fan to embracing fame as an actual singer, so watching the miniseries was a real eye-opener. It's also damn good; although that ought not to be too surprising given that it's from the same writer, producer and director team that made Mrs Biggs (2012).

It begins in 1960, Liverpool, the same year and location in which The Beatles formed. Cilla's own evolution runs parallel to theirs and even overlaps on occasion. As you'd expect, almost everyone speaks in a Liverpudlian accent. The hard 'g' and '–ckk' sounds are better performed by some of the cast than by others, but everyone is easily identifiable as being Scouse.

Mrs Biggs (2012)

Mrs Biggs (2012)

Dir. Paul Whittington | 5 episodes, approx 50 minutes each.

An ITV miniseries based on the life of Charmian Biggs (played by Sheridan Smith), wife to the most well-known of the Great Train Robbers, Ronnie Biggs (played by Daniel Mays). If you don't know the historical aspect, in 1963 Ronnie and fifteen other men robbed an English Royal Mail train that was carrying £2.6 million (approx £48 million in today's money) and they did it without using guns.

The series begins a few years prior to that event, though, in 1957. Charmian Powell is an innocent, dependable young woman who holds a steady job and has a strict, controlling father. Ronnie is a part-time petty crook, a Jack the Lad, Jimmy Chancer, etc, and also a bit of a charmer. The inevitable happens.

The journey from youthful innocence to reluctant accomplice avoids pure melodrama. It's often difficult to sympathise with a criminal and easier to have those feelings for a criminal's wife, but covering up the truth even for noble reasons is still an immoral act. The series doesn't force you to abandon the judgements you'd naturally have toward that kind of behaviour, so you're free to dislike Charmian's choices if you choose to and still enjoy the ride.

F for Fake (1973)

F for Fake (1973)

Dir. Orson Welles / François Reichenbach, Oja Kodar, and Gary Graver (uncredited)

In Orson's own words, it's a "film about trickery," which is something that's explored in both the subject matter and through the medium via which it's presented.

Part documentary, part biopic, and part essay on the nature of what's real and what's fake, the film twists viewer perceptions while remaining wholly faithful to its own agenda, whatever that may be at any given time.

Its carefully constructed randomness is anything but. Hiding insight inside of hindsight, at times it's as frustrating as it is revealing, but about what exactly is something that's very much open to debate. Ultimately, it's a work made and narrated by Orson, but might be more about him than anyone else featured in it, real or constructed.

NOTE: depending where you look, or which edition you prefer to own, it's variously listed as having been released either in 1973, '74, or '75. The earliest screening date I can find is 1973 (San Sebastián Film Festival), so I went with that.

Fearless: Director's Cut (2006)

Fearless: Director's Cut (2006) 

Dir. Ronny Yu

A biopic of Master Huo Yuanjia, founder of the world-renowned Jin Wu Sports Federation.

The disclaimer in the end credits states: while this motion picture is based on historical events, characters and incidents have been composited, invented and fictionalized.

It should really have been presented at the beginning to help viewers achieve the correct mindset needed to fully appreciate the film. I don't know about anyone else, but on my first viewing I was expecting the realism of a biopic. Having expectations thrown so far into the wind tainted the experience and it was many years before I gave it a second chance. I'm glad I did, though, because it's a film that deserves a place on a Jet Li fan's shelf.