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The Silver Branch Director: Katrina Costello Tale
nt: Patrick McCormack Released: 5 October First Man Director: Damien Chazelle Talent: Ryan Gosling, Claire Foy Released: 12 October The Silver Branch centres around the highly publicised and community dividing plans by the government’s Office of Public Works to build a large scale interpretive centre at Mullaghmore in the Burren area in the 1990’s. First-time director Katrina Costello skillfully uses the building of this interpretive centre as a McGuffin. This film goes far beyond its farmer/government David vs. Goliath battle, and instead becomes a deep meditation on existence and the connection we hold with the land and those that have come before us. Through magnificent shots of the Burren, The Silver Branch absorbs all senses and throughout it weaves a subtle conversation on life. Our journey’s guide is Burren Action Group member Patrick McCormack, a farmer and poet who left school at the age of 14 to follow in the footsteps of his ancestors and “walk the land to be as close to nature as possible.” His poetic narration is both informative and reflective, as the viewer is guided by his hypnotic voice-over. We follow McCormack – observing him like one of the Peregrine Falcons that patrol his skies – through scenes of building a stone wall and tending his sheep. At the time, the group members were labeled by some as “green fascists and elitists” for opposing the large-scale construction that, it was argued, would create an abundance of jobs for those in the county. Although misunderstood, those in opposition of the interpretive centre were led by their values and beliefs to fight what they felt was the good fight. The Silver Branch is brilliantly layered and executed, a master class in documentary film making and a deep breath of fresh country air that everybody needs to take in. RO In less than five years, Damien Chazelle has ascended to the crème de la crème of Hollywood directors following the one-two punch of Whiplash and La La Land. With First Man, Chazelle is no longer content with resurrecting the Hollywood musical or bagging J.K. Simmons his much deserved Oscar. Instead he’s crafted nothing short of an epic, a gorgeously rendered quest to get Neil Armstrong’s size 9 and a half’s on the moon. Everything, from Nathan Crowley’s maddeningly claustrophobic sets to Ai-Ling Lee’s monstrous sound design, captures the violent, terrifying insanity of shooting men into space in a tin can. It’s a film that deserves to be seen on the biggest screen possible. Or rather, it should be. Chazelle’s previous films have always had shaky narrative cores. Strip away the show-stopping set pieces and deft characterization, and you’re left scratching your head at the character arcs and motivations. First Man seems like an over-correction on that part. Armstrong’s arc is rock solid, and in theory, moving, but both he and the rest of the cast are dull ciphers. Dialogue is strictly functional, and we barely get a glimpse into the interior lives of this huge, unwieldy group of people. What does it say about a Neil Armstrong film when Buzz Aldrin is the most engaging character? Ryan Gosling has made a career out of playing quiet, obsessive professionals, and this role offers little challenge. Only Claire Foy, as Armstrong’s wife Janet, finds layers in the anemic script, conveying oceans of love and resentment with a mere glance. Top things off with lumpy pacing that regularly kills any momentum and you’re left with a movie not unlike the moon itself; staggeringly beautiful for sure, but ultimately lifeless. JOH 77