Old (2021) - Utter failure

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An attractive woman's legs turn old, wrinkled and into bones on a beach on this poster for M. Night Shyamalan's Old

 

A beautiful family of four, who are, however, threatened by imminent break-up due to a still unannounced divorce, arrive at a strange vacation resort. A guide soon drives them to a remote, picturesque beach, where they and other vacationers start to age with record speed.

Old is written and directed by Indian-born American master filmmaker M. Night Shyamalan (Praying with Anger (1992)), whose 14th feature it is. It is an adaptation of graphic novel Sandcastle (2011) by Pierre Oscar Levy and Frederik Peeters.

An attempt at a thought-provoking concept here instead results in 105 minutes of characters who cannot grasp the wild physical changes they are going through, which only register with reactive groans and yawns for the viewer, who is 0% invested in them. Old is a streaming-friendly, speedy narrative of the Lost (2004-10) type mystery genre, where a batch of insufferable, yelling, screaming, crying characters leave you apathetic and thirsting for the end credit roll.

22 year-old (at the time of shooting) Alex Wolff (Patriots Day (2016)) portraying a 6 year-old is also an experience I could have been without. Old makes you wonder if the once fantastic Shyamalan will ever again hit the nail on the head with a film.

 

Related posts:

 

M. Night Shyamalan: Glass (2019) - Shyamalan buries past effort in ominous superhero nonsense 

2015 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED IV]

The Visit (2015) - Shyamalan's creepy mini-comeback

Top 10: Best Twentieth Century Fox titles 

The Happening (2008) - Shyamalan's out-there, unsettling, undervalued sci-fi horror 

 

 

Watch a trailer for the film here

Cost: 18 mil. $

Box office: 90.1 mil. $

= Big hit (returned 5.00 times its cost)

[Old was released 21 July (Belgium and 6 other European markets) and runs 108 minutes. Shyamalan received Sandcastle for Father's Day in 2017 and decided to adapt it. Shooting took place from September - November 2020 in the Dominican Republic. The film opened #1 to a 16.8 mil. $ first weekend in North America, where it spent another 2 weekends in the top 5 (#2, #3) and grossed 48.2 mil. $ (53.5 % of the total gross). The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were Russia with 6.2 mil. $ (6.9 %) and Spain with 5.6 mil. $ (6.5 %). Shyamalan returned with Servant (2019-22) and theatrically will return with Knock at the Cabin (2023). Gael García Bernal (No (2012)) returned in Maya and the Three (2021, miniseries) and theatrically in Z (2021, unreleased); Vicky Krieps (Phantom Thread (2017)) in Frida (2021, short) and theatrically in Beckett (2021, VoD). Old is rotten at 50 % with a 5.60/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

 

What do you think of Old?

Aquarius (2016) - Braga stays with us in Filho's multifaceted drama

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+ Best Brazilian Movie of the Year + Best Character Study of the Year  + Best Political Movie of the Year

Fittingly, Sonia Braga is at the center of this poster for Kleber Mendonça Filho's Aquarius

Aquarius is the second fiction feature from great Brazilian writer-director Kleber Mendonça Filho (Neighboring Sounds/O Som ao Redor (2012).

Clara is a cancer survivor, widow, mother and grandmother in her 60s, comfortably living in her beach-front apartment, which is in the building Aquarius, which a huge construction company want to tear down to allow for new construction.

Aquarius is solidly anchored in its location of Recife, Brazil, where Filho also is from, which it portrays with tenderness and insight. It establishes its pace, which some may call languid, but which is really quite daring, instantly. Daring because all those minutes of running time need material, meanings and focus. Best of course is that the film pulls it off. We do get much more insight and meanings, - poignant observations on the differences between Clara and her children's generations, on child care, death, sickness, sexuality, personal strength through opposition, - even a wry comment on the 'digital revolution' - much more than would have been possible at a tighter running time.
Aquarius is a film that hinges on a single performance more than anything else: That of Sonia Braga (Dona Flor and Her Two Husbands/Dona Flor e Seus Dois Maridos (1976)), who gets a well-deserved and terrific comeback here in her first Brazilian performance in 15 years as Clara, the stubborn, proud, dignified and incredibly beautiful protagonist. Much of the suspense of the film,  - clearly a drama but one with a central conflict (that of the company's wanting to rid their building of obstinate Clara) that becomes very tense, - comes from our recognition of Clara's fragility in the situation, despite her personal character strengths. Satisfyingly, though, Filho does not push his plot into the criminal and violent problems of his country that we might expect, but instead leads us to an ending that is both surprising, shocking and thrillingly empowering. Braga is like a force of nature throughout but not least here.
Though the film has good supporting performances all-around, one deserves singling out: Humberto Carrão (Aurora (2016)) plays the young, slimy company chief who attempts to harass Clara out of her home with a naturalness that is positively off-putting, - doing a great job in other words.
Aquarius is a wholly realistic story with the kind of imperceptible, taut photography (by Pedro Sotero (I Swear I'll Leave This Town/Prometo um Dia Deixar Essa Cidade (2014)) and Fabricio Tadeu (Neighboring Sounds)) that is only commenting imperceptibly on the action, - except for the throwback use of zooms now and then.
Aquarius is rich on poignant details that are open for interpretation and implicit social and societal criticisms. It is a very worthwhile and unusual film not to miss.

Related posts:

 

2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED III]

2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED II]

2016 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]

Watch a trailer for the film with Spanish subtitles here

Cost: Reportedly 3.4 mil. R$, equal to approximately 1.07 mil. $
Box office: In excess of 2.6 mil. $
= Even
[Aquarius premiered 17 May (Cannes) and runs 140 minutes. Braga rehearsed for 3 weeks prior to filming. Shooting took place in Recife, Brazil in seven weeks from August - September 2015. The team behind the film spurred controversy at Cannes with a red carpet protest against what they saw as the coup at home against president Dilma. Controversy continued through the film's life in Brazil, possibly leading to its not becoming the country's Oscar entry (much less seen Little Secret/Pequeno Segredo (2016) got that honor instead.) The film opened #56 in 3 theaters to a 29k $ first weekend in North America, its 3rd biggest market, where it peaked at #44 and grossed 285k $ (11 % of the total gross). The biggest markets were Brazil with 1.2 mil. $ (46.2 %) and France with 601k $ (23.1 %). The gross above does not include several smaller markets, whose gross are not made public. The film is set to release in Greece and Poland within the next two months. It has been nominated for a César (France's Oscar), an Independent Spirit Award, won the Sydney Film Festival Best Film award and more. Aquarius is certified fresh at 97 % with an 8.2 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Aquarius ?